Across Worlds
by moonstruckgirl15
Summary: What really happened during those two years away from the Academy? Rose is the only one who knows, and the memories and tragedies haunt her to this day. A story of how what we lose finds its way back to us in time. Femslash. hiatus until summer because college
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Howdy, guys! Hope you enjoy this first chapter. I thought I should make sure everyone is clear on a few basic things before you read. One: this is a Rose/Lissa femslash story. Two: takes place in Frostbite. Three: it will be fairly similar to the plot of Frostbite in the beginning. Four: Rose and Dimitri (though I like him when he isn't being a major jerk-face) have no feelings beyond friendship for each other.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but this plotline. So go away you creepy douche lawyers!**

Chapter 1

Rose

I didn't think my day could get any worse until my best friend told me she might be going crazy. Again.

"I… what did you say?"

I stood in the lobby of her dorm, leaning over one of my boots adjusting it. Jerking my head up, I peered at her through the tangle of dark hair covering half my face. I'd fallen asleep after school and had skipped using a hairbrush in order to make it out the door on time. Lissa's platinum blonde hair was smooth and perfect, as always, hanging over her shoulders like a bridal veil as she watched me with amusement.

"I said I think my pills might not be working as well anymore."

Ah, the pills. I straightened up and pulled the hair out of my face. She was talking about the pills she'd been given to keep spirit, the element she wielded, away.

Spirit was a powerful element, but it was bittersweet. Those who used it could do incredible things, like bring people back from the dead, walk through dreams, and use very powerful vampire mind control known as compulsion. But it also filled them with darkness, which messed with their thoughts and moods. Lissa and I had first-hand experience with that. Before we figured it out, Lissa's moods could get so low that she'd cut herself. Thankfully, we'd also found a way to lessen Spirit's effects. I, as Lissa's shadow-kissed bondmate, could take the darkness out of her and into myself. Of course, that presented its own problems. If I took the darkness, I got all the bad effects. I didn't get depressed so much as homicidally angry. So we were in a real bind until I also learned that I could transfer the darkness I took from Lissa into a silver object, enhancing the properties of that object.

Back to the pills. I didn't see the need for them. The school insisted that she take them and completely cut herself off from her powers. I would have intervened, but to do so and tell them what I knew would bring up questions I didn't want to answer.

"Are your powers back?" I asked.

She shook her head, and I saw a small flash of regret in her eyes. "No… I feel _closer_ to the magic, but I still can't use it. Mostly what I'm noticing lately is a little of the other stuff, you know.… I'm getting more depressed now and then. Nothing even _close_ to what it used to be," she said. She was referring to what it used to be before my…"brief" _absence_ as it were.

"What about the other things you used to get? Anxiety? Delusional thinking?"

Lissa laughed, not taking any of this as seriously as I was. "You sound like you've been reading psychiatry textbooks."

I had read a lot of textbooks a _long_ time ago, and since then I've practically been an expert. But she didn't need to know that. "I'm just worried about you. If the damn pills aren't working, I want to be ready to take the darkness out of you. I still have the dagger in my room." We'd used an old dagger of mine that I'd had for years, one of my only possessions from… Anyway, it was silver and with all the darkness infused in it, it was a hell of a handy tool in the fights we occasionally had with Strigoi while we were on the run.

"No, no," she said hastily. "I'm fine, really. They're still working… just not quite as much. I don't think we should panic yet. Especially you—not today at least."

Her change in subject actually worked. I'd found out an hour ago that I would be taking my Qualifier today. It was an exam—or rather, an interview—all novice guardians were required to pass junior year at St. Vladimir's Academy. Since I'd been off hiding Lissa, I'd missed mine. Not that I needed it. I touched the concealed promise mark on the back of my neck and the battle mark below it. I had already taken the Qualifier with Arthur Schoenberg years ago, but that was not something _anyone_ needed to know, not even Lissa. Today I'd be going off campus to see a guardian who would administer the test to me. Thanks for the notice, guys.

"Don't worry about me," Lissa repeated, smiling. "I'll let you know if it gets worse."

"Okay," I said reluctantly.

Just to be safe, though, I opened my senses and allowed myself to truly feel her through our psychic bond. She had been telling the truth. She was calm and happy this morning, nothing to worry about. But, far back in her mind, I sensed a knot of dark, uneasy feelings. It wasn't consuming her or anything, but it had the same feel as the bouts of anger and depression she used to get. It was only a trickle, but I didn't like it. If I booked it, I could get the dagger before I had to leave.

She pointed to the clock. "You better get moving."

"Damn it," I swore. She was right. I gave her a quick hug. "See you later!"

"Good luck!" She called.

I hurried off across campus and found my friend and mentor, Dimitri Belikov, waiting beside a Honda Pilot. "I know, I know," I said, seeing his face. "Sorry I'm late." Dimitri stood there, looking like the lovably intimidating big bear he was. I loved my Dimka like a big brother. The massive, brick building cast long shadows over us, looming like some great beast in the dusky predawn light. Around us, snow was just beginning to fall. I watched the light, crystalline flakes drift gently down, reminding me of another life, a happier one… but I brushed those thoughts aside.

"Who else is going?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Just you and me."

I nodded. It didn't really matter to me whether it was the two of us or a mini army, though the mini army might dispel any awkwardness between us. You see, awhile back me and Dimitri had a little, uh, _situation_. A lust charm was cast upon us by Victor Dashkov, a total douche who kidnapped Lissa, _tortured_ her, to make her heal him so he could be king. Anyway, the magic made us attack each other sexually. Since then, it's been very difficult to do anything together without bad thoughts and blushing.

We got into the car and were on our way. I decided to use the time to focus on the Qualifier.

It wasn't the kind of thing you could study for. You either passed it or you didn't. High-up guardians visited novices during their junior year and met individually to discuss students' commitment to being guardians. I vaguely remember what I was asked the first time around. It was mainly an assessment of character and dedication. Most novices passed, but some had been deemed unfit to continue down the guardian path.

"Don't they usually come to the Academy?" I asked Dimitri. "I mean, I'm all for a field trip, but why are we going to them?"

"Actually, you're just going to a _him_, not a _them_." A light Russian accent laced Dimitri's words, the only indication of where he'd grown up. "Since this is a special case and he's doing us the favor, we're the ones making the trip."

"Who is he?" I asked as I lifted a water bottle to my lips.

"Arthur Schoenberg."

It was cliché, but I spewed water onto the windshield. "What?" I squeaked. Arthur was a legend _everywhere. Ev-ery-where. _He was lethal, even in his later days. His exploits were part of Academy curriculum. What startled me wasn't that I was going to be tested by a legend. It was that I was going to him. As I said, I had taken with him the first time, and it was a hell of a coincidence to be doing it again.

I could see Dimitri hiding a smile. "You'll be fine. Besides, if Art approves of you, that's a great recommendation to have on your record." Silence fell in the car as I tried to shake off the feeling of déjà vu I was experiencing. "You'll do fine," he repeated. "Relax."

"Fine, but ya know what would help?" I asked.

"Hmm?"

"If you turned off this crap music and put on something that came out after the Berlin Wall went down."

Dimitri laughed. "Your worst class is history, yet somehow, you know everything about Eastern Europe."

"Hey, gotta have material for my jokes, Comrade."

Still smiling, he turned the radio dial. To a country station.

"Hey! This isn't what I had in mind," I exclaimed.

I could tell he was on the verge of laughing again. "Pick. It's one or the other."

I sighed. "Go back to the 1980s stuff."

He flipped the dial, and I crossed my arms over my chest as some vaguely European-sounding band sang about how video killed the radio star. I wish someone would kill this radio.

The Arthur I knew was head of the Guardian council—the group who assigned guardians to Moroi and whatnot—and living at Court. The Arthur I was about to meet protected a small group of Badicas in a small town along I-90, not far from Billings. Moroi were split on where to live. Some believed that the crowds of cities would allow vampires to get lost in crowds. Yet others, like this family, felt that with fewer people to notice you, the less you would be noticed. The house was built in a rambler style, all one level with gray-stained wood siding and big bay windows—tinted to block sunlight, of course. It looked new and expensive, and even out in the middle of nowhere, it was about what I expected for members of a royal family.

I jumped down from the car, my boots sinking through an inch of smooth snow and crunching on the gravel of the driveway. The day was still and silent, save for the occasional breath of wind. Dimitri and I walked up to the house, following a river rock sidewalk that cut through the front yard.

Then suddenly, my guardian sixth sense was tingling. I stopped walking and so did Dimitri. In almost perfect synchronization, we turned our heads to scan the broad, white plains surrounding us before settling back on the house. We watched it for a full minute, studying for signs of… anything unusual.

Cautiously, we approached the front door. It wasn't open, but it wasn't entirely shut either. It looked like it had been closed in haste, not sealing. Further examination showed scuffs along the door's edge, as though it had been forced at some point. The slightest nudge would open it. When Dimitri touched the door handle, it jiggled a little like it had been broken.

Finally, he said quietly, "Rose, go wait in the car."

I was about to tell him to go fuck himself in a businesslike way when he gave me a look to kill.

"Go," he said.

I went back to the car and watched him very carefully enter the house. I counted to ten before getting out of the car. I circled around the right side of the house through foot-deep snow. I kept walking until my foot hit something. I brushed the snow away with foot. It was a silver stake. It had been driven into the ground. A shiver ran down my spine, and it wasn't from the cold. There was only one reason to drive a valuable silver stake into the ground around a house of Moroi.

I kept moving until I reached a patio. A window had been broken in order to unlock the door. I opened it, praying it didn't squeak. It was eerily silent as I entered. I gripped the stake firmly and tiptoed into the next room.

The room with a body in it. It was a woman. She lay in front of the TV, her dark hair spilling out from her and her throat torn out. I turned my head to find a second corpse, a man killed the same way. Another body was slumped on the couch, that of a child. Grief filled me at the sight of this carnage, grief over all the wasted life. I knelt by the woman and put my fingers to her eyelids. I drew them shut and whispered a simple blessing for the dead I learned a long time ago.

I stood and moved to the next room. Dimitri was in the basement I believe. I was in the kitchen, and the only body was one of another young woman who couldn't have been older than 30. I shut her eyes and whispered the blessing. My foot creaked on the wood panels.

Then there was a sharp cry. I leapt up, quietly of course, stake in hand. I listened again, and sure enough there was another softer whimper. It was coming from inside the wall. I ran my hand over the wall, tapping the wood. There was small, rectangular section that seemed to be hollow. Dimitri was coming in, and I hastily motioned for him to be quiet. He silently came up behind me while I felt for a latch or something that would help me get into the hollow area. When I found it, I yanked, and it opened.

Inside… was a baby. Wrapped in a cutesy blanket with fire trucks on it, a little baby boy stared up at us, tiny tears down his face, cooing. Without a second thought, I stuck the stake in my belt and reached inside. I lifted him into my arms, holding him close.

"Shh, little one," I crooned. Dimitri backed up as I turned around. The look we shared was one of equal amounts of shock and sadness. I looked back at the child. "Hey there, little guy. Don't cry now. It's gonna be okay." To Dimitri, I said, "Call for help if you haven't already. I need to check him for injuries. We need to get him out of here safely and back to the Academy."

He nodded, face set, and moved to the phone. I set the little fella on the kitchen table and unwrapped the blankets. He was in his pajamas, blue stripes with Thomas the Train Engine or whatever on the front. He didn't seem to be harmed, which brought me to the conclusion that he had been hidden before the Strigoi could get him. I looked at the woman on the floor. He had her eyes.

I bowed my head again in respect for the fallen mother whose final act was saving her child's life.

**AN: Okay, guys, this is chapter one. You see that hyperlink that says Review this Chapter? It's pretty, right? Why don't you click it and see what happens? Please no flames about the little baby. I have a reason for it.**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hurray! Another update in a single day! Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I own the plotline, nothing more.**

Chapter 2

Rose

Dimitri made one phone call, and a veritable SWAT team showed up.

It took a couple hours, though, and every minute waiting felt like a year. I finally couldn't take it anymore and went back to the car with the baby. He wasn't crying anymore, just looking around and cooing. Dimitri examined the house further and then came to sit with me.

He kissed the baby on the forehead, muttering some words in Russian. "_Thank God you are safe, little man._"

"He has no family now," I said. He met my grim gaze with his own. "What will they do with them? Will other Badicas take him in?"

"Maybe," he said, but I could see it in his eyes that he didn't believe it. It made me sick to my stomach all over again.

"It was her last act, you know," I said. He looked at me blankly. I nodded at the infant. "His mother. In the last moments she had before the Strigoi found her, she hid him in the wall. She could've escaped but she didn't."

"She was his mother," he said, as if it explained everything. "That's what mothers do."

I grew bitter at that. "That's what _most_ mothers do." He didn't respond, but he did give me an unreadable look.

When the guardians arrived, we quietly got out of the car. Most went straight into the house but one female guardian came to speak to Dimitri. He called her Tamara. We went to join the other guardians inside. Tamara knelt by Arthur's body.

"Oh Arthur," she sighed. "Never thought I'd see the day."

"At least they got one Strigoi before they died," said a male guardian. He and two others were standing by the one Strigoi that had been killed, a dark haired male. I had only looked him over briefly, but I saw enough to know that it wasn't the guardians that killed him.

"That's not true," I whispered plainly enough. All eyes turned to me, although I thought my voice was too low for anyone to hear.

"Why do you say that, Rose?" Dimitri asked. There was a look in his eyes that made me think I may be getting tested today after all. Fine by me.

"The evidence points more towards the Strigoi killing him, not the guardians," I said casually. There was a mix of chuckles and skeptical looks from the guardians. Dimitri's brows lowered in confusion.

"Mind explaining that to us?" He said.

"Not at all," I responded. I held out the baby to him. "Hold him, please. Be careful not to wake him." He took the infant and started rocking him gently. It made me smile briefly. I walked to the dead Strigoi. "Move, please," I said to the arrogant guardians. They scowled, but let me by. I knelt next to the body and lifted up his shirt, revealing dozens of tiny, partially healed cuts and bruises. "You see these?" They nodded. I moved to his wrists, revealing more cuts but also patches of raw skin. I found the same thing on his legs. "These are signs of torture and imprisonment. He's been starved as well, conclusively indicating that the guardians here trapped him and have been interrogating him for multiple days. When Guardian Belikov and I scanned the basement for a second time, we discovered a back room equipped with a heavily reinforced chair with durable metal and leather restraints and torture tools on a table."

"So maybe they were through with him and killed him off?" Tamara reasoned. I gave her a steady look.

"After letting him upstairs to an area full of Moroi? I don't think so." I turned back. "If they had broken him they would have killed him in the chair. And then there's this." I pointed to his forearm, where the shirt had been torn open and the single word Omertà was carved.

"What about it?" The presumptuous guardian asked, and he sounded like a pouting child. The other guardians looked just as clueless.

I gaped at them. "None of you know what Omertà is?" They shook their heads.

"Explain, Rose," Dimitri said.

I sighed exasperatedly. "Omertà: Whoever appeals to the law against his fellow man is either a fool or a coward. Whoever cannot take care of himself without that law is both. For a wounded man shall say to his assailant, '_If I live, I will kill you, but if I die, you are forgiven_.' Such is the rule of honor." I recited the code effortlessly, almost in a bored way. "It is a code of honor that preaches that one must take care of his problems by himself and not ask for help from anyone, specifically authorities, but mainly it is meant as a code of silence. If you break silence, you deserve to die and you will be hunted down by those you betrayed. It was often customary in older days to carve Omertà into the flesh of the snitch before executing him so he may feel and look upon his shame in his final moments. To be honest I'm not surprised it's been employed by Strigoi."

I looked back again to find a room of speechless guardians. I'm sure I would have laughed if the situation wasn't so grim. My case rested, I walked back to Dimitri and took the baby from him. "The six or so Strigoi that invaded the house were likely coming to retrieve him. They killed the guardians and the Moroi and then released him. When they discovered that he had broken silence, they carved the word and staked him. Then they left."

The ride back to the academy was heavy with silence. We had been charged with taking the baby to the Academy, so he was currently in my arms sucking on a warm bottle. Dimitri drove with his usual stoic countenance, but I could feel how tense he was.

Finally, he got the guts to ask. "How did you know what that word meant?"

I didn't look up from the baby. "When Lissa and I were on the run, we met a group of exiled guardians who had fled to marry either their Moroi or each other. They taught us all sorts of things. Honor was one of them." That wasn't a total lie. Lissa and I had met a group of exiled guardians, but not while running from the Academy.

He scowled slightly. "And what would guardians who abandoned their duties know of honor?" There it was, the old mental tattoo. _They come first_.

"I am grateful for their teachings regardless."

When we arrived at the Academy, everyone knew about the massacre. The school day had ended and now everyone was socializing. We started heading toward the elementary dorm, but Stan, a guardian/teacher at school, told us to go straight to Kirova's office. I had the strong feeling that I was about to be pestered.

"Miss Hathaway, would you care to explain why I got a call from the Billings guardians complaining about you intruding on their investigation of the scene?" Those were the first words out of the Headmistress's mouth.

Pestering! What did I tell ya! I rolled my eyes before meeting her old gaze with my sharp one. "I merely pointed out things they should've seen on their own. Important things."

"Oh, so debating what killed an average Strigoi is important now is it?"

She was getting on my nerves. "Very. Determining who actually killed him can tell us a great deal. If a guardian had killed him, it means nothing. But it wasn't a guardian that killed him. It was another Strigoi who knew or believed he had betrayed their secrets to the guardians. That means that there was something the Strigoi knew, say plans to attack another royal family, that his buddies wanted to stay hidden. It's basic logic; two can keep a secret if one of them is dead."

She glared at me because she knew I was right. "Regardless, you should know to keep your tongue. You are a novice, an observant one at that, but just a novice, and they are experienced guardians." Her eyes fell on the child.

"Take him to the elementary dorm. They'll take good care of him," she said, and now her tone was soft. I nodded and Dimitri and I turned to leave. But then I remembered.

"Headmistress, does anyone know his name?"

She looked at me for a moment before answering. "They found a birth certificate. His name is Alyec Lukas Badica."

A tiny grin tugged at my mouth as I looked down at him in my arms. "Hi there, Alyec."

It was with a curious amount of anxiety that I relinquished Alyec to the Moroi at the elementary dorm. I figured it was a maternal instinct acting up, telling me to keep the boy close and safe. I needed to talk to Lissa, so I headed to the library where the bond directed me.

It was pitch-black as I walked along the stone walkway that crossed the quad from my dorm to the secondary school's main building. Snow completely covered the grass, but the sidewalk had been meticulously cleared of all ice and snow. It reminded me of the poor Badicas' neglected home.

Slipping through the library's electronic gate, I immediately headed for one of the back corners where geography and travel books were kept. Sure enough, I found Lissa sitting there on the floor, leaning against a bookcase.

"Hey," she said, looking up from an open book propped up on one knee. She brushed a few strands of her pale silky hair out of her face. Her boyfriend, Christian, lay on the floor near her, his head propped up on her other knee. He greeted me by way of a nod. Considering the antagonism that sometimes flared up between us, that was almost on par with him giving me a bear hug. I had nothing against personally, or _not anymore_, but he could just be such a pain in my ass sometimes. Despite her small smile, I could feel the tension in her as it sang through our bond.

"You heard," I said, sitting down cross-legged.

Her smile slipped, and the feelings of fear and unease within her intensified. I liked that our psychic connection let me protect her better, but I didn't really need my own troubled feelings amplified.

"It's awful," she said with a shudder. Christian shifted and linked his fingers through hers. He squeezed her hand. She squeezed back. I swallowed the knot that formed in my throat at the sight. It was stupid jealousy, jealousy of what they had together and the happiness they found in each other. Those were things I could never have again, I knew that, but that didn't stop my heart from wanting. "They're saying… they're saying there were six or seven Strigoi. And that humans helped them break the wards."

I leaned my head against a shelf. News really did travel fast. "It's true."

"Really?" Asked Christian. "I figured that was just a bunch of hyped-up paranoia."

"No, I was there."

Lissa's eyes widened, shock coursing into me from her. Even Christian—the poster child for "smartass"—looked grim.

"You're joking," he said, voice uncertain.

"I thought you were taking your Qualifier…" Lissa's words trailed off.

"I was supposed to," I said. "Instead, I walked into a slaughterhouse. The guardian who lived there was supposed to test me, but he and every Moroi but one in that house were dead. The only survivor was an infant I found hidden in the kitchen wall. His mother had put him there before the Strigoi found her." I looked at them, rare tears forming in my eyes. "His name is Alyec. He's a sweet little boy with his mother's eyes. He's an orphan now. They're caring for him in the elementary dorm."

Lissa put a hand on my shoulder. "Rose, are you okay?" She asked softly.

Lissa, the one I was looking at now, was my best friend, but there _were_ some things I couldn't bring myself to tell her. She never pressed me for information, for which I was glad.

"Fine," I said, teeth clenched. A moment of awkwardness hung between us. Reading Lissa's mind, I felt her desperately grope for a new topic.

"They say this is going to mess up all the holiday visits," she told me after several more moments. "Christian's aunt is going to visit, but most people don't want to travel, and they want their kids to stay here where it's safe. They're terrified this group of Strigoi is on the move."

I didn't doubt that last statement. I was worried about any group, Strigoi or no, that followed Omertà because often times they were hostile. As for Christian's aunt, I looked forward to "meeting" her. Tasha Ozera was definitely a woman I could get along with. She was strong-willed and smart, a fire user like Christian. She was a strong believer in wielding magic on the offensive, like me, Lissa and Christian, and she wasn't a stuck-up snob like most Royals.

"This is going to keep a lot of families separated," I murmured.

"And mess up a lot of royal get-togethers," said Christian. His brief seriousness had vanished; his snide air was back. "You know how they are this time of year—always competing with each other to throw the biggest parties. They won't know what to do with themselves."

I believed that. My life was about fighting, but the Moroi certainly had their share of internal strife—particularly with nobles and royals. They waged their own battles with words and political alliances. Me? I liked the more direct method of knocking someone's teeth out to get what I want. Lissa and Christian in particular had to navigate some troubled waters, both being from royal families. Not to mention, Christian was burdened under the shadow cast by his parents, who willingly became Strigoi, while Lissa was burdened by being the second-to-last in her line. She had a sister I was still searching for named Jill.

"You guys should try to solve things like we do. A good fistfight here and there might do you royals some good."

Both of them laughed at that. I stood up. "You leaving?" Lissa asked.

"I'm tired from today. I haven't slept in awhile. I'm going back to my room," I said. She nodded sympathetically and waved bye. I left the library and jogged to the dorms.

After I shut the door of my room, I slumped against it and slid to the floor. Blinking back the tears that have been threatening all day, I took my most prized possession out of my short. My locket and the rings on either side of it dangled from the charmed chain around my neck. I opened it and just stared at the picture inside. My thumb reached out to trace the face in the photo.

"Things were so hard today, Darling," I whispered as the tears rolled down my cheeks.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Unknown

I was so pissed right now; it was un-freaking-believable! Kyle, _that bastard_, betrayed us. He broke the code! He snitched, and those damn guardians almost got away with knowing our plans!

I stopped and took a deep breath. It was okay, though. We fixed everything before it could hurt us. The snitch was dead and so were his interrogators.

The plan was still good to go. My most trusted were gathering the required materials. My eyes narrowed as that thought brought me back to Kyle. I would have to do a thorough investigation of my house. I had to know who I could fully trust with information. This was much too important to risk. There could be no mistakes!

I took another calming breath before leaving to check on our progress.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Yay, another chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own my laptop, my iPod, my phone, my brain and this storyline. I do not, however, own Vampire Academy.**

Chapter 4

Rose

The lobby of my dorm was abuzz when I sprinted downstairs to my before-school practice. The commotion didn't surprise me. A good night's sleep and a one-sided conversation with a photograph had done me a lot of good. Was I insane? It wouldn't surprise me.

But I was missing something….

They were excited about something, whispering and squealing and gesticulating. But I couldn't stop to inquire, or I'd be late.

"Hath-away, don't run-away," a singsong voice called.

I glanced behind me and grinned. Mason Ashford, another novice and a good friend of mine, jogged up and fell in step with me.

"What are you, twelve?" I asked, continuing on toward the gym.

"Nearly," he responded. "I missed your smiling face yesterday. Where were you?"

Apparently my presence at the Badica house still wasn't widely known. I wasn't in the mood to discuss it, so I lied. "Had a training thing with Dimitri."

"God," muttered Mason. "That guy is always working you. Doesn't he realize he's depriving us of your beauty and charm?"

"Smiling face? Beauty and charm? You're laying it on a little thick this morning, aren't you?" I laughed. He was a nice boy, one that would make a girl very happy someday. He liked to flirt, with me in particular. Part of it was because I liked to flirt back, or I made it seem so, but I knew his feelings for me were deeper than friendly. It made me sad, especially because I could've seen myself loving him before. He had pretty blue eyes and messy red hair and he shared my goofy sense of humor. We'd go well together. But my heart, with its endless wounds, was incapable of developing such feelings for anyone anymore, and I only wanted companionship from him.

"Hey, I'm just telling it like it is. Really, you're lucky to have someone as suave and brilliant as me paying this much attention to you."

"Suave and brilliant, huh?" I shook my head. "I don't think you need to pay nearly as much attention to me as you do your ego. Someone needs to knock you down a peg."

"Oh yeah?" he asked. "Well, you can try your best on the slopes."

I stopped walking. "The what?"

"The slopes." He tilted his head. "You know, the ski trip."

"What ski trip?" I was apparently missing something serious.

"Where have you been this morning?" he asked, looking at me like I was a crazy woman.

"In bed! I only got up, like, five minutes ago. Now, start from the beginning and tell me what you're talking about." I shivered from the lack of movement, "And let's keep walking." We did.

He started going on about the Academy sending everyone to a huge ski resort so families won't be separated for Christmas and so guardians could protect them.

"You can't be serious," I said. We reached the gym and stepped inside out of the cold.

Mason nodded eagerly. "It's true. The place is supposed to be amazing." He gave me the grin that always made me grin in return. "We're going to live like royalty, Rose. At least for a week or so. We take off a day after Christmas."

I stood there excited and stunned. It was a brilliant idea, and what a reunion spot! His enthusiasm was contagious. I could feel it welling up in me, and then, suddenly, it slammed to a halt.

Studying my face, he saw the change immediately. "What's wrong? This is cool."

"It is," I admitted. "And I get why everyone is excited, but the reason we're going to this fancy place is because a bunch of people were killed." Alyec's face crossed my mind, and I made a note to stop by the elementary dorm after training. "Doesn't it feel a little weird?"

Mason's cheery expression sobered a little. "Yeah, but we're alive, Rose. We can't stop living because other people are dead."

_Oh Mason, if only you knew. If only you realized how easily a person's will to live can be taken from them. Like mine…_


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Rose

When training ended, I begged Dimitri to cover for me while I went to check on Alyec. He solemnly agreed and I sprinted off in the direction of the elementary dorm.

The matron directed me to the nursery where I could hear a familiar high-pitched wailing. A frazzled-looking Moroi woman was rocking Alyec, who was crying. I went to them and silently gestured for her to give him to me. She eyed me warily for a moment before placing him in my arms.

Alyec paused in his cries, looking up at me in wonder. Then his little hand reached out and he touched my chin and cooed. I smiled. "What's with all the crying, buddy? I could hear you from the high school dorm." I looked to the woman, who was watching in awe. "You look pretty beat. Why don't you go take a break for awhile? I've got him." Again, she gave me a careful look, but it turned to one of relief. She nodded and shuffled out of the room.

I turned back to the boy. "You've only been here a day and you're driving people crazy. I've rubbed off on you already." His little lips curled up at the corners, and I laughed. I rocked him and took the opportunity to look around the nursery. I'd never actually been in here, at least not since they remodeled it. I was pleased by the warmth it exuded. The walls were a light green and there was a ceiling border with baby stuff on it. Cribs lay in neat lines with little girls and boys either sleeping or playing with a toy. Soft pink and purple blankets for girls and blue and green ones for boys.

"Honey, you must be an angel, 'cause that's a miracle." I turned to another Moroi matron, one with a lovely mocha complexion and kind brown eyes. I tilted my head, motioning for her to explain. She nodded at Alyec. "That boy has been driving everyone to drink, and it's barely been a day." She came forward and patted his head. "Couldn't seem to settle, poor thing. We tried everything; bottles, diapers, toys, but he just kept crying until he fell asleep. Until you came along."

"Maybe he just needs to get familiar with this place," I said, rocking him. The matron nodded.

Then it seemed she got an idea. "Do you mind staying a little longer and give him a bottle? Will you be missing a class?"

"I will, but I can stay," I said easily. She nodded and handed me a warm bottle of formula.

"What class are you in? We'll call to let them know you're here."

"Combat training in the gym," I said absently, already mesmerized as he started sucking. I heard her leave. "Do ya think Stan will get mad if I tell him I was feeding a baby instead of listening to him blabbering?" I smiled and nuzzled him. "He's nothing but a big meanie, you always remember that, Alyec Badica. A big, red-faced meanie." I launched into one of my rants about Stan—baby appropriate of course—and was overjoyed by how much he seemed to be listening. But maybe I was imagining it.

The same matron alerted me when first hour ended. Alyec had fallen asleep, so I carefully relinquished him to her and took off. I was still late, but I was too happy to care. Stan wasn't, naturally.

"Late again, Hathaway," he growled as I walked in. "What's the reason this time, dare I ask?"

I smirked. "I was teaching an infant the finer art form of ticking you off, Guardian Alto. I'll also be late on Wednesdays and Fridays giving lessons to the toddlers."

There were snickers from my classmates, but they were actively trying to be quiet, which was odd. Stan scowled. "Take your seat," he growled. I did, and that was when I noticed what was different today.

We had holiday visitors, it seemed. Three guardians sat at the front of the room. A tall elderly man who still looked like he could kick some major ass, one Dimitri's age that had several girls swooning and then…

My mother.

I couldn't believe it. Janine Hathaway. My insanely famous and stunningly absent mother. She was no Arthur Schoenberg, no me, but she did have a pretty stellar reputation in the guardian world. I hadn't seen her in "years" because she was always off on some mission. And yet… here she was at the Academy right now—right in front of me—and she hadn't even bothered to tell me she was coming. So much for motherly love.

Each of the guardians got up to tell stories of their experiences. They had the class's rapt attention. The first two were actually interesting, but then it was my mother's turn. A scowl spread over my face before she even said a word, and it only got deeper as she launched into the story. I swear, if I didn't believe her incapable of an imagination, I would have thought she was lying. It was more than a story; it was an epic tale, the kind of thing that won Oscars. I tuned out for most of it.

I perked up when she mentioned finding a lair where multiple Strigoi were living together, but I felt it better to hold my tongue until she was through. I seemed to be the only one unimpressed by her harrowing tale, and it enraged me to see the awe on everyone else's faces.

_They'd faint and run away screaming at the things I could tell them…_

When she finished, a dozen hands shot up to question her about her technique, whether she was scared, etc.

After the tenth question, I couldn't take it anymore. I raised my hand. It took her awhile to notice and call on me. She seemed mildly astonished to find me in class. I considered myself lucky that she even recognized me.

I didn't waste time with formalities, I went straight to the point. "The Strigoi you found living together, did they appear to have another purpose than draining the prisoners?"

She frowned uncertainly. I think she'd gone on guard the moment she called on me. "What do you mean?"

"Did they seem to have any other reason or incentive to live together? A larger goal? A need for protection? Battle plans? Everyone knows it's rare, but not impossible."

"No, there did not seem to be any other motives," she said.

I was about to press her, but the bell rang. "Hathaway, stay here," Stan said. I shrugged and stayed where I was. Everyone left but my mother. I frowned. Stan said something to her and then went into the storage area in the back of the classroom.

My mother and I stared at each other for a long time, a pair of wolves playing dominance games.

She spoke first. "Well, I see your manners haven't improved over the years."

I stood up and glared coldly. "Nice to see you too. I'm surprised you even recognized me. In fact, I didn't even think you remembered me, seeing as how you never bothered to let me know you were on campus." Damn, I miss the days when we were on good terms.

She shifted her hands from her hips and crossed her arms across her chest, becoming—if possible—even more impassive. "I couldn't neglect my duty to come coddle you."

I laughed, but it was a bitter, humorless thing heard from someone with little left to lose. "Coddle? Do you even know the meaning of the word?"

"I wouldn't expect you to understand. From what I hear, you don't really know what 'duty' is."

"I know exactly what it is," I retorted. "Better than most."

Her eyes widened in mock surprise; I hated that look, whether I was on the giving or receiving end. "Oh really? Where were you for the last two years?"

_Two years… As if._

"Where were you for the last five?" I demanded. "Would you have known I was gone if someone hadn't told you?"

"Don't turn this back on me. I was away because I had to be. _You_ were away so you could go shopping and stay up late."

I hadn't meant to let my anger get the best of me, but it happened. I grabbed the desk between us and threw it into the wall. The reverberating crash was enough to collapse buildings, but I was too enraged to care. She looked too startled to say anything for a moment, and I took the opportunity. I got in her face and shoved my finger into her chest.

"You have _no_ idea why I left," I said, my volume bordering on shouting. "And you have no right to make assumptions about a life you don't know anything about!"

"I've read reports of what happ—"

I threw my hands into the air. "Reports?" I spat, sarcasm dripping like grease off my words. "Very nice. Cuz reports could tell you all about how I had to abandon everything I had to protect Lissa, or how I made myself sick on a regular basis keeping her from going insane, or even about the scars I got fighting off Victor Dashkov's psi hounds!

"There was no one we could go to for help, not when there wasn't hard proof. We were _alone,_ fighting for our lives. And all you did was read the _reports_, which could tell you _nothing_ of what I went through. Is that all your maternal instincts, if they even exist, tell you do? If it is, I feel _so loved_!"

"Miss Hathaway, that's enough!" We both turned to see Stan at the storage room door, glaring at me. He was red-faced. He took a harsh breath before saying, "You can go now."

I did not look to see the look of shock on my mother's face as I stormed out of the room. People outside gave me funny looks, but they quickly scurried away at my lethal scowl.

Nothing could cheer me up the rest of the day, not even Mason.

Dimitri knew better than to ask me about it in practice at the end of the day. I think he still has headaches from occasionally from the last time he dared to make a comment. We were covering staking, going through everything I already knew.

Towards the end of training, I noticed a dummy with curly red hair, and everything from Stan's class came roaring back.

"Can I stake that one next time?" I nearly hissed.

He gave me a cautious look before answering, "I don't think that would be healthy."

"It's better than me actually doing it to _her_," I grumbled, slinging my backpack over my shoulder as we headed out of the gym."

"Violence isn't the answer to your problems."

It happened like that sometimes. Someone would say something, a completely innocent phrase, and I would be consumed. Many times I had been told 'violence isn't the answer' when a pair of soft and achingly familiar lips had shaped the words. The voice I would hear was as light and tinkling as bells, bells that changed tones but never lost their beauty.

The vast hole in my chest, which throbbed in time with the beating of my pulse, suddenly impaled me on a spear of despair. Memories, my memories, came flooding into my mind. They were bittersweet things, and they hurt me even as they soothed me.

They knocked the wind out of me. I clutched my chest, gasping quietly for air, putting my hands on my knees.

"_You need to know that violence isn't always the answer. You need to know how powerful love can be."_

"_How can I not know, with you here before me?"_

"Stop," I whispered to myself. Those words kept echoing in my ears, as clear as the day they had been spoken. The pain in my heart sliced through me once more. _I will never hear those words, her words… again._

A hand on my shoulder saved me before I collapsed, for the weight of my grief was so intense. I looked up blearily into Dimitri's face. He was watching me in deep concern. He gave me a little shake.

"Roza, what's wrong? What pains you?" He said quietly. Roza was his nickname for me, one he only used when we were in training with no one else around.

His words further freed me from the thick tar. I straightened and rubbed my face. He waited patiently. When I finally looked back, I apologized. "What you said… it triggered some bad thoughts."

"About your mother?" He probed softly.

I shook my head. It was incredible that in five seconds I could forget about the thing that really led up to this. "No, not her. Some… You don't know them," I finished lamely.

"Will you be alright?"

I took a deep breath, and then another. "I think so. Thanks, Dimitri."

"No problem," he said, though he didn't seem to know what I was thanking him for. I gave him a weak smile before I walked away.

I really need to work on my self-control.

**AN: I'm sensing a pattern forming. I think all or most of my updates are going to be short bursts with two to four chapters of varying length with a few weeks in between each for school. I have my first AP class ever, so I need to focus. In other related news, you'll be pleased, or I think you'll be pleased, that I have a big plot in the works for this. I mean huge, like gargantuan. Working on the details now. I hope you like it.**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Yes! I finally finished it. Sorry for the longer wait.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

Chapter 6

Rose

Walking is a good thing. I walked around campus to calm my nerves, and it actually worked. When I stopped, I found myself in the trees surrounding the Academy, not far from a small frozen pond. I went there only to find Christian, Lissa, and a woman whose back was turned to me skating on it. It was such a peaceful scene, it made me smile slightly.

Lissa grinned when she saw me. "Rose!" Christian glanced over at me as she spoke, and I got the distinct impression I was invading on their romantic moment. Lissa skated up to me. I stared in bewilderment.

"This is an odd sight, to say the least," I said, loud enough for all of them to hear.

"Oh come on," said the voice of a woman I knew well. The third person turned around and revealed herself to be Tasha Ozera. She grinned at me. "Winter, frozen pond, ice skates. What's so odd about that?"

I smiled in return and gestured around. "The fact that it's happening here, at St. Vladimir's, where the simplest acts of unsponsored frivolity are cruelly penalized, is what's so odd."

That earned me their laughter, Tasha's in particular.

"Cruel?" Said Dimitri, who was just walking up.

I smirked. _Now the fun begins_. "Yes, cruel, Mr. Not-So-Fashionably Late. Forcing some poor schmuck to sit in on an hour of Kirova's ranting, _while_ organizing and alphabetizing old files, is an act of the blackest evil and the foulest intent."

More laughter. Dimitri even cracked a small grin. Tasha walked up to him and punched him lightly in the arm. "Lighten up, Dimka, ya big lug."

"Oh, I think we need a keg of vodka to make that happen," I said. Tasha and I shared a smile.

She extended her hand to me. "Tasha Ozera," she said. "I've heard a lot about you, Rose." I gave Christian a look, and Tasha laughed. "Don't worry, it was all good."

"No, it wasn't," he countered.

She shook her head in exasperation. "Honestly, I don't know where he picked up such awful social skills. Not from me." That was obvious, I thought.

"What are you guys doing out here?" I asked.

"I wanted to spend some time with these two." A small frown wrinkled her forehead. "But I don't really like hanging around the school itself. They aren't always hospitable…."

I knew what she was referring to. The Ozeras had had a bit of bad luck that cast a shadow over all of them. Christian's parents willingly became Strigoi, and the stigma had been painted onto the rest of the family, whether they had been involved or not. Even Tasha, the one who had fought them to rescue Christian, was shunned.

I put my hand on her shoulder, smiling kindly. "You'll face no such treatment with us," I said. She smiled back gratefully.

"Well, let's not stand out here, not when we can build a fire inside."

I cast a wistful glance at the pond, but then followed the other inside. The cabin was humble, one room with a small, bare bed, a few shelves and a fireplace. Tasha lit a fire with her magic and we all sat down. Tasha handed out marshmallows, so we feasted on the gooey goodness. I listened to the others talk in their own relaxed ways. For a moment, I could imagine that I was back There, sitting by a fire in winter, watching the people I cared about most enjoying themselves. _Watching Her smiling at everyone, laughing. Then she looks at me, green eyes alight with joy and love, light dancing off her pale skin. She leans over to wipe a drop of melted goo from the corner of my lip and, ever so discretely, licks it off. She gives me That Look, and I know we're leaving the conversation for something much more fun. Should we offer an excuse?_

"Rose." Wham! Back on Earth. I focused on reality again and turned to Dimitri. "Come back to us, Rose. We were just talking about Tasha's job. She teaches martial arts classes."

This was, again, something I already knew, but I played along. "You teach martial art sto humans?"

When Tasha nodded, Christian joked, "What do you think, Rose? Think you could take her?"

_Yes_. "Hard to say," I said.

Tasha crooked me a grin. "You're being modest. I've seen what you guys can do. This is just a hobby I picked up.

Dimitri scoffed. "Now you're being modest. You could teach half the classes here."

"Not likely," she said. "It'd be pretty embarrassing to be beaten up by a bunch of teenagers."

"I don't think that'd happen," he said. "I seem to remember you doing some damage to Neil Szelsky."

Tasha rolled her eyes. "Throwing my drink in his face wasn't actually damage—unless you consider the damage to his suit. And we all know how he is about his clothes." They both laughed.

I watched this exchange with a big grin. _There are sparks there already, even if they haven't yet lit a decent flame._

"Where the best place a girl can go shopping around here?" Tasha said next.

Lissa and I exchanged a glance. "Missoula," we said.

Tasha sighed. "That's a couple hours from here, but if I leave soon I can get there before the stores close. I'm hopelessly behind in Christmas shopping."

Lissa groaned. "I'd kill to go shopping."

"Maybe we could sneak along…." I gave Dimitri a hopeful look.

"No," he said immediately. I rolled my eyes.

Tasha yawned. "I should get some coffee so I don't sleep on the way in."

I had to try. "Dimitri could drive you."

"And keep him up all night?" She shook her head. "I wouldn't do that to you, Dimka."

"He doesn't mind," I said quickly, excited about this solution.

Dimitri seemed amused by me speaking for him, but he didn't contradict me. "I really don't."

She hesitated. "All right. But we should go soon."

Our illicit party dispersed. The Moroi went one way, Dimitri and I went another. He and Tasha made plans to meet up in half an hour.

"Tasha's cool," I said when we were almost back.

"She is," Dimitri said. He didn't say anything else.

When we reached my dorm, I gave him a smirk. "See you tomorrow, _Dimka_."

I turned and walked away, but not before glimpsing him rolling his eyes.

**AN: This is the way I see it. Everyone in this story is hopefully going to get a happy ending one way or another, even Tasha. I actually kinda like her, and really wish she wasn't evil, but I think that may be because I just don't like Dimitri and Rose together much. He's too big a jerk a lot throughout the series (obviously ignoring when he was Strigoi cuz he couldn't really help it) for me to like the pairing. But I give him a happy ending too. With Tasha. Hurray for Rose and Lissa!**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Yes! Another chapter!**

**To FirestormRunner: this is her introduction chapter. I hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, not even AJ.**

Chapter 7

Rose

After another surprising night of deep sleep, I moved through my morning with something almost akin to cheerfulness. I went to combat class and started stretching out with my "fellow" novices. Mason was getting more and more excited by the day—perhaps it was more accurate to measure in hours—about the ski trip, and sometimes could barely contain himself. That was nice, particularly because the more I was around him when he was happy, the less I felt, well, unhappy.

I heard Stan enter with someone unfamiliar at his side. I looked up to see a teenage girl with long, straight black hair and bright green eyes talking to him in quiet tones. She was slim for a Dhampir, with little curves and pale skin. She was dressed for training, like us, in loose sweat pants and a plain black T-shirt. Looking at her more closely, I realized that she was an Ivaskov. Or rather, an illegitimate Ivashkov. Interesting. A lot of Dhampirs were illegitimate royals, but most never knew exactly who their Moroi parent was. I wonder if she did, this girl.

"Class," Stan called, bringing everyone else's attention to them. "We have a new student with us. This is Abigail Douser. She's just transferred from Alder Academy."

No one did anything, or said anything. I could see how uncomfortable Abigail felt with the silence. I stood and walked to her, extending my hand.

"Rose Hathaway," I said. She looked at me warily for a moment, but reached out and shook my hand. She had a firm shake, which I liked.

"AJ," she responded, still in the quiet tone she used with Stan. She seemed very reserved, but that was not so unexpected from a new student. I gave her a kind smile before my eyes shifted to Stan. He had this look like he wasn't pleased that I was talking to AJ.

I smirked at him. "What's wrong, Guardian Alto? Afraid I've corrupted her already? We've only just shaken hands." He merely scowled at me, while my classmates snickered behind me. He made a grunt that might have been words and stalked off. I looked back at AJ, who, for a brief second, had a slight grin on her face. But too soon it was gone, replaced by her previous expression.

Politely, I gestured for her to join us in stretches. She took to a solitary corner of the room just separate from the rest of us, not speaking to anyone else. That worried me, but I set it aside for later. Probably she was just shy.

Curiously enough, I noticed Mason watching her with interest. I watched him, as he in turn watched her. There was curiosity, concern, and even a little admiration in his gaze. I glanced back at AJ, who was just silently stretching. She was very pretty. There was a striking quality to her. Her dark, dark hair was in excellent contrast to her milky skin, which looked soft and smooth even from here. She was long and limber, particularly in her legs. Then there was the attractive quality of strength in her, a trait you could find in any properly trained Dhampir. She was muscled, but not overly so, with a balance that was just right.

But her eyes were, without a doubt, her most stunning feature. Such handsome, remarkable emeralds. They held intelligence, traces of wit, and that reserved caution that exuded from her being. Those eyes took me back, back to some long passed day when I found happiness in such beauty. My own brown eyes closed as I remembered the particular scene.

"_Rose, I can't believe you did that!" I watched Her silently as She paced back and forth across the room, jade green eyes blazing, lips set in an angry frown. It was almost amusing to see Her riled liked this, but I knew if I didn't do something to calm Her soon, I'd be running out of the room baying like a whipped dog._

"_I'm sorry, darling. I couldn't help myself."_

_She scowled and pointed Her finger at me. "Don't you darling me, you little sneak! You and Mason and Eddie ate the whole roast! __**And**__ the potatoes, __**and**__ the rolls! The only thing you monsters didn't suck into your endless vacuum stomachs was the salad."_

_I didn't think telling Her vegetables were icky would help my situation at all. I rose from the couch and went to Her. "I'm sorry; I really am. But… we…"_

_She waited expectantly, but I didn't know what to tell Her. "You what? Forgot that Dimitri and Tasha and your __**parents**__ were joining us for Christmas dinner? Or maybe that the roast wasn't even cooked? You idiots could have worms right now for all we know!"_

_I looked at my feet, feeling like a schoolchild being scolded by a teacher. "What can I do to fix it?"_

"_You can go to the store right now and buy a whole new roast, a new bag of yeast rolls and another thing of potatoes," She said, pointing to the door._

_I knew better than to try and whine or wheedle my way out, so I resignedly went, grabbed the keys from the kitchen counter, got my coat and started trudging out in the two and a half feet of snow to the car._

_It took an hour and a half to get to the store, find what I needed—my love is very specific about exactly what brands and types of food She wants—get through the endless checkout line, trudge back to the car, and then drive home. To make matters worse, the heater in our car busted up two days ago—and it was a brand new car too!—so I was freezing my nips off._

_Wearily, I got inside and shut the door, taking off my boots and coat on the doormat so not to track snow in, and moved to the kitchen. Waiting for me there was a steaming cup of hot chocolate with a note underneath. _

_Drink this and then come to bed. –Me._

_That brought a jaw-cracking smile to my tired face. Not wasting any time, I gulped down the sweet, hot beverage and relished in the warmth that spread through my body. I went upstairs and silently entered our bedroom. I could see Her sleeping soundly in our bed, but I moved to the bathroom to wash up. After pulling on a favorite threadbare long-sleeved shirt and a pair of sweat pants, I slid under the covers and wrapped my arms around Her slim frame. She rolled over to face me, Her face resting in the crook of my neck._

"_Didn't mean to wake you," I whispered. She nuzzled me._

"_I wasn't sleeping," She said. She snuggled closer, pressing the whole of Her warm body against mine. We were silent for a while, just resting in the other's presence._

_Then She whispered, "You will never eat another uncooked roast, or any other parts of any meals before they're ready ever again. Understand?"_

_I smiled in the dark. "Yes, ma'am."_

"_Good," She said. "Because next time I __**will**__ whip you. Good night." She always knew what I was thinking._

"_I love you."_

_She rubbed Her cheek against my chest. "I love you too."_

"Rose?"

I opened my eyes to see AJ looking down at me in concern. Dazedly, I looked around to realize I was back in the training room at the Academy. Well, damn. I looked back at AJ and asked her with my expression what was going on.

"We're pairing up for sparring," she said. I got to my feet and looked around for Mason. But soon enough he came up behind me, looking at AJ.

"I'll partner with you, AJ," he said. Then, as if by a second thought, he nodded at me. "We can switch off. There's an odd number of people in class now."

Shaking off my disorientation, I allowed amusement to take its place. _Sucking up to the pretty new girl, Mason?_ _Well, good for you. You'll have better luck with her._

AJ nodded, so we moved to an unoccupied area and got to it. She was good, _very_ good, easily defeating our dear Mason. She must've been really good at Alder. But, she wasn't as experienced as a full-time guardian like me, so I toned it down some like I did for most classes. I let myself fall for a sham move that allowed her to put me on the floor.

"You're awesome at this," I said as I pulled back to my feet.

She nodded, and a slight smile lit up her face. "My instructors always said I was a killer."

I smiled back. We then turned and helped poor Mason to his feet.

Things were definitely less gloomy for me when I headed to my after-school practice. Once I dressed in my usual workout attire, I went down to the gym. But when I stuck my head inside the practice room, I found it dark and quiet. Flipping on the light, I peered around for Dimitri, only to hear the footsteps of someone I really didn't want to see.

"Shit," I muttered.

"He's not here."

"I'm aware," I said, turning to face my mother. She was dressed in similar wear to mine. "Were you put in as his replacement or did you volunteer? Not that I particularly care, but I am curious. Where is Dimitri?"

"_Guardian Belikov_ is in bed. He just got back a couple of hours ago and needed to sleep." I noticed that she pointedly ignored my first question.

I snorted, looked up at the ceiling and shook my head, a small grin on my face.

"What?" She demanded.

"Nothing," I shot back. "It's just surprising that he didn't protest. The _Dimitri_ I know has a tendency to overwork himself."

"Put these on," she said, tossing a pair of training mitts at me. They were like boxing gloves but not as thick or bulky. They served the same purpose though: protect your hands and protect your opponent from your nails.

"What are we doing?"

"Basic offensive and defensive parrying. Use the red lines."

"That's all?" I asked.

She leapt toward me, and I neatly dodged.

"Well," she said in a voice that _almost_ sounded sarcastic. "As you seem so keen on reminding me, I haven't seen you in five years. I have no idea what you can do."

She moved on me again, and I made it appear that I just barely dodged her. This quickly became a pattern. She did her best to keep me from being able to go on the offensive and I left her to it. As I said before, she was good, but she wasn't as good as me.

"So, what?" I asked. "This is your way of making up for maternal negligence?"

"This is my way of making you get rid of that chip on your shoulder. You've had nothing but attitude for me since I arrived. You want to fight?" I allowed her fist to connect with my arm. "Then we'll fight. Point."

This made me sad again inside, wistful, and I think it showed. "There you go again, making assumptions based on nothing. I never wanted to fight. I've just been trying to talk to you."

"Mouthing off to me in class isn't what I'd really call talking. Point."

"Asking a relevant question isn't what I'd call mouthing off," I shot back. "And I have a unique style of communication."

"I'd say so. You know your little stunt with the desk left a hole in Guardian Alto's classroom wall."

I shrugged. "Guardian Alto is used to my communication style. And I'll point out who started that little squabble in the first place. Not so innocent now, are you, oh-so-calm-and-saintly-Guardian-Hathaway?"

She didn't answer to that, but instead picked up the pace of her punches, actually making this interesting. The fight grew progressively more heated, until we were technically going out of lines. I think she forgot about those. I went low and sweep her feet from under her. It worked because she didn't see it coming. But on the way down, she managed to get me back, grabbing onto my necklace and yanking me down with her. I hit the floor back-first and head-second.

Pain cracked through the back of my head, and my vision went blurry and sparkly. Within seconds, my mother was leaning over me.

"Rose? Rose? Are you okay?" Her voice sounded hoarse and frantic. The world swam.

**AN: Haha, did you guys like that? Before anyone says anything; no, Rose does not get the hots for AJ. But tell me what you think of her. My friend created her, I just write her into the plot. And tell me what you think of the memory, cuz I need feedback!**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Unknown

Everything was nearly in place. I sauntered down the hall, whistling an old tune I liked from 1750. Mathew had finally managed to acquire a proper athame, and Alicia and Ben had collected the proper plants and solutions we needed.

No one else had broken our trust. It pleased me to know that we could make such a good example of Kyle.

It wouldn't be long now, not long at all. I preened in a nearby mirror, fixing my collar before continuing down the hall to the main room.

Jacoby and Fyodor stood guard at the double doors.

"I'm here to see the Master," I said, showing them my summons. Impassively, they opened the doors to let me through. I beheld before my eyes a grand feast. The Master was having friends over, it seemed. The scent of blood spilling from the veins of the human sheep chained throughout the space was intoxicating and mouthwatering, but that was not the reason I was here. I moved to the front of the space, where He sat in all His glory. He glanced up at my approach, tossing the drained corpse of some human woman to the side.

"Nathan," he said, grinning. He gestured around him. "What do you think?"

"You know how to throw good parties, Master," I said. He smirked.

"I know. On to business, though. I trust you've finished collecting the necessary items."

I nodded. "Yes, Master. It took some time, with several obstacles, but we've managed to meet all of your requirements."

"Good," he said cheerily, rising to his feet. "Good. Well, by all means, stay awhile. Enjoy the party." He dragged over a sheep no older than sixteen and tossed her to me. "The food is most good this evening."

I smirked and watched him go. I turned my attention to the girl, drinking her fear into my lungs like a fine spice. Effortlessly, I snapped her neck and buried my fangs in her jugular. The Master was right. The food was good tonight.

Today was, most definitely, a good day.

**AN: Dun dun duuuuhhhh!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy nor any of its mentioned characters. I do however, own Alyec and jointly own AJ, who will actually become more important soon.**

Chapter 9

Rose

I awoke in the Academy med clinic. There, someone shone a light in my eyes and started asking me a number of needless questions.

"What's your name?"

"What?" I asked, squinting at the light.

"Your name." I recognized Dr. Olendzki peering over me.

"You know my name."

"I want you to tell me."

"Rose. Rose Hathaway."

"Do you know your birthday?"

"I believe I do. Why are you asking me such silly things? Did you lose my records?"

Dr. Olendzki sighed and walked off, taking the irritating light with her. "I think she's fine," I heard her tell someone. "I want to keep her here for the school day, just to make sure she doesn't have a concussion. I certainly don't want her anywhere near her guardian classes."

I spent the day moving in and out of sleep because Dr. Olendzki kept waking me up to do her tests. She also gave me an ice pack and told me to keep it close to my face. When the Academy's classes let out, she deemed me well enough to leave.

"I swear, Rose, I think you should have a frequent patient's card." There was a small smile on her face. "Short of those with chronic problems like allergies or asthma, I don't think there's any other student I've seen here so often in such a short period of time."

I returned her slight grin, able to see the humor in the situation. If only she knew…

"So, no concussion?"

She shook her head. "No. You're going to have some pain though. I'll give you something for that before you go."

So she did. She gave me some strong stuff, but nothing like the real thing. I think she was afraid of what I would do if she gave me Vicodin.

I stood from the bed, testing myself. When I didn't fall over and die, I got my things and walked out. The moment I was outside, I fell against the wall and pull out my necklace.

"Oh thank God," I breathed when I found everything still intact. Gotta love earth magic. It'll rot the wood right out from under you one day and protect your most prized possession from damage on another. Tears, damn them, they sprung to my eyes. I slid down the wall and allowed them to fall for a moment. They were tears of relief, relief that this thing that meant so very much to me was safe. I picked up the first ring, the one on the right side and slid it onto my finger.

_Still fits_, I thought wryly. The diamond sparkled on my finger over a simple gold band.

_My wedding ring._ What a day that was, surrounded by royals and guards and cameras, all talking and snapping and watching. But it made me smile still. After all, it was the day I was eternally bound to the person I loved more than my own life.

When I slid the ring off, there was an immediate feeling of emptiness that vibrated all throughout my body. I felt incomplete, but that was nothing new. And the ring was, essentially, only a balm for the feeling. I would never have the chance to feel complete again in this life, and I'd come to accept that. After all, it wouldn't last forever. That was what brought me most comfort these days; _it wouldn't last forever_. Maybe if I was lucky I'd—

"Hey Rose, is it true your own mother took you down?"

I froze. I'd know that taunting soprano voice anywhere. I looked up into the deep blue eyes of Mia Rinaldi. Curly blond hair framed a face that might have been cute if not for the malicious smirk on it. A year younger than us, Mia had taken on Lissa (and me by default) in a war to see who could tear apart the other's life most quickly—a war, I should add, that she started. It had involved her stealing Lissa's ex-boyfriend—despite the fact that Lissa had decided in the end that she didn't want him—and the spreading of all sorts of rumors.

Admittedly, Mia's hatred hadn't been entirely unjustified. Lissa's older brother, Andre—who had been killed in the same car accident that technically "killed" me—had used Mia pretty badly when she was a freshman. I felt sorry for her, and I could understand her anger, but she was wrong to take it out on Lissa the way she did.

Lissa and I had technically won the war in the end. It was a fight I had never wanted, due to the fact that I knew Mia was really a good person deep down. A rough-cut diamond, if you will. She was also a strong leader, which was why she was able to bounce back as quickly as she did. Strong leaders will always attract followers.

She stood by the vending machine, thinking she'd drawn me out. I got to my feet, preparing to go in the other direction. "I've neither the time nor the mood to deal with you, Mia. So if you'll excuse me, I will take my leave."

She looked thoroughly taken aback, but she recovered quickly. "Huh? Run out of your oh-so-clever comebacks."

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you really looking to confront me? After what happened last time? I would've thought your nose would take longer to heal."

Her icy smile twitched a little, but she didn't back down. I had broken her nose about a month ago—at a school dance—of all places, and while mostly healed, it was still a little askew. Surgery could fix it up, but from my understanding of her family's finances, that wasn't possible just now.

"It's better," she replied primly. "Fortunately, it was only broken by a psychopathic whore and not anyone in my actual family."

With difficulty, I held back a snarl. Call me a psychopath if you must and I'll readily agree with you. But how dare she call _me_ a whore! After everything she'd done, she had no right to say that.

And I would never be unfaithful to my Beloved. Even now, when I can only be with Her in memories and dreams, I would never betray our bond, our _vows, _for some fleeting urge for another.

So I gave Mia my most practiced psychopathic smile. "Too bad. Family members hurt you by accident. Psychopathic whores tend to come back for more."

"Ladies," came a stern, female voice. We turned to see one of Dr. Olendzski's assistants looked at us disapprovingly. "This is not a verbal arena. Stop bickering or at least take your squabble elsewhere."

Oh, saved by the nurse. I nodded to her and, without another word or glance at either of them, stalked back towards my original destination.

Lissa opened the door, caught sight of the thickening purple bruise wrapping around my neck, squealed, and pulled me inside.

"Oh my god, Rose! What happened?" She said, taking me over to her bed.

"You haven't heard? You may be the only one." I sprawled on her bed, I told her about the day's events. She was properly appalled.

"I heard you'd been hurt, but I figured it was one of your normal things," she said. She sat down beside me, lightly running her finger over the bruise. Her touch was a soft comfort, and I was reminded of a question I'd had many times since my… well, my Absence, for lack of a better word. Why had I not developed any romantic feelings for this amazing girl before me? It was a mystery to me, especially considering…

When I told her about how Mia found me, her eyes got wide. She touched the locket. "Did she see what was inside?"

I shook my head. Lissa knew… a bit of what happened to me. Enough to know that I valued the ring, the locket, and whatever was inside it more than my life. I felt sorry for keeping so many secrets, but she understood.

"No, it's safe. I put it back in my shirt before she got a good look at it."

She gave me a sympathetic little half-smirk. "Inter-dimensional border hopping is a hard thing to keep hidden, huh?

I returned the look. "On occasion." She didn't know how right she was sometimes. Inter-dimensional travel _was_ a bit conspicuous. That was what happened to me, what caused my Absence. I went to a parallel universe.

Sounds crazy, right?

How do ya think I felt? One moment I was coming home to an apartment Lissa and I were renting with some other people in Maryland—this move came about after douche Victor's psi hounds found us—and the next I was waking up in a whole other place. I mean a _whole_, _**other**_, _**place**_. Soon I discovered that, yes; I was in a different reality but also stuck without one damn way to get home (I eventually found one though, obviously).

My thoughts became wistful. It was There that I met Her. There that I fell in love and fell really fucking hard. There that I…

I stopped myself there, refocusing on the big picture. This reality was, as I said, parallel, so it was pretty damn similar to the one I was in now. Similar enough that I tortured my brain on more than one occasion meeting people There that I knew Here. Ugh, it hurt just remembering the source of such utter bewilderment.

Anyway, as I was saying (thinking?) earlier, when you travel to another world and do it the way I did, it leaves its traces. I again ran my fingers over the concealed Promise Mark on the back of my neck. Over the endless expanse of _molnija_ marks to the Battle Mark. Lissa was the only one Here who ever saw them. She didn't know what they meant. Well, she knew they meant I killed a ton of Strigoi, too many to count, but she couldn't understand why I had my Promise Mark. And I didn't enlighten her.

The dagger was another thing, but that was no problem. As long as no spirit users or other shadow-kissed touched it, no one would think anything of it.

The rings were the hardest. It was so obvious that they were an engagement and wedding ring. The locket wasn't nearly as ostentatious or unusual. The rings were what always caught people's attention, like Lissa and Dimitri. That's why I kept it all under whatever top I was wearing or, if the top didn't cover them, I convert it to what amounted to a typical string of Buddhist prayer beads that wrapped around my left wrist and hand where it was less likely to be noticed.

"Sometimes a good disguise is all you need," I said to Lissa.

I noticed then what she was in fact wearing: a silky lavender shirt and a knee-length black skirt. Her long hair had the kind of smooth perfection only people like her could pull off. I was not immune to her beauty. If anything, I was probably more aware of it than most everything else. Which made sense, again, considering.

"You like nice. What's up?"

She was briefly thrown off by my abrupt change in subject, but recovered. A happy little package of feelings passed to me through the bond. "I'm meeting Christian soon."

Whatever had made things seem like the old days when it was just Lissa and me disappeared at the mention of _him_. The knowledge that she was leaving me soon for him stirred up dark feelings in my chest. Okay, maybe I lied a little when I said I didn't hold anything against him anymore. Naturally, I didn't let Lissa know that.

"Wow. What'd he do to deserve that? Rescue orphans from a burning building? If so, you might want to make sure he wasn't responsible for the building being on fire in the first place."

Laughing, she turned from the mirror and noticed me gently touching my neck with my fingers. Her smile turned kind. "It doesn't look that bad."

"Thank you for the comfort. Really," I added, to make sure she knew I was sincere.

She touched my cheek lightly. "Anytime." Then she let out a frustrated sigh. A sense of bitterness filled her. It wasn't directed at me, but at her situation. She hated feeling helpless, unable to help others with her power. Anger sparked inside her. In a moment, it caught flame and it turned into something uglier. The darkness.

Without any hesitation I got up from the bed and grabbed her wrist. I reached for her silver hairbrush in my other hand. I pulled the sticky darkness out of her and like clockwork channeled it through my own qi, if you will, and into the brush. Taking darkness into myself alone was effortless. It merely required me purposefully reaching into Lissa's mind and touching the dark. Pushing it out into something else took training and time to learn how to do, involving lessons in legit meditation and the control of one's chakras, special areas of the body that are believed to be the sources of a living creatures' different energies. It took me a decent while to master the technique.

But just like that, the darkness was gone and Lissa was smiling at me gratefully.

"Thanks."

"Of course."

She turned and caught sight of the clock. "I'm late! I've got to go meet Christian!"

Joy filled her, underscored by nervous anticipation. They were in love. There was nothing to be done about it. I should know. We left the dorm, her sprinting away, promising we would talk tomorrow. I wandered back to my own dorm. I washed my face and brushed my hair before going to my room.

I was packing my backpack for the next day when a burst of emotion abruptly shot through my bond with Lissa. It caught me unaware and gave me no chance to fight it. It was like being knocked over by a hurricane-force wind, and suddenly, I was no longer looking at my backpack. I was inside Lissa, experiencing her world firsthand.

That was a big mistake.

Because Lissa was with Christian.

And things were getting… hot.

**Well, how was that? I'm sorry for being so abrupt about Part 1 of the big secret if it bugged anyone, but I needed to get it out in the open and get this chapter to you guys.**

**But are the pieces starting to come together? I've left a lot of clues if you look for them. Tell me your theories, seriously. And anyone who read that little bit that came before, don't say anything! Or at least say it in a pm, please. Don't give it away.**

**Expect a lemon next chapter. It will be… interesting.**


	10. Author Note!

**AN: Sorry, this isn't a chapter. I just forgot to mention something in my last chapter note. You know how Rose said she hadn't developed any romantic feelings for Lissa? Don't worry about that. I promise you it all works out, even if it makes your brain hurt now. As I promised, Everyone will get a happy ending of some sort.**


	11. Chapter 10

**Well, here's your first lemon chapter. I hope it's good.**

**Disclaimer: I wonder if I own Her. Maybe…**

Chapter 10

Rose

Christian was kissing her, and my god, it was a _kiss_. Usually I got stuck in Lissa's head because of some negative emotion, but there was _nothing_ negative about what she was feeling.

She was happy. Very, very happy.

They were in their love nest in the attic of the school's chapel. The place had been a regular hangout for them, back when each of them was feeling antisocial and wanted to escape. Eventually, they decided to be antisocial together, and one thing led to another. Since they started publicly dating, I hadn't known they spent much time here anymore. Maybe they were back for old time's sake.

And indeed, a celebration did seem to be going on. Little scented candles were set up around the dusty old place, candles that filled the air with the scent of lilacs. I would have been nervous about setting all those candles in a confined space with flammable boxes and books, but Christian probably figured he could control any accidental infernos.

They finally broke that insanely long kiss and pulled back to look at each other. They lay on their sides on the floor with several blankets under them.

"Don't you think we're going to go to hell for this?" asked Lissa.

He reached out and touched her face, trailing his fingers along her cheek and neck and down to the top of her silky shirt. She breathed heavily at that touch, at the way it could be so gentle and small, yet evoke such a strong passion within her.

"For this?" He played with the shirt's edge, letting his finger just barely brush inside of it.

"No," she laughed. "For _this_." She gestured around the attic. "This is a church. We shouldn't be doing this kind of thing up here."

"Not true," he said. "The church is downstairs. This is storage. God won't mind."

"You don't believe in God," she chastised. Her delicate hands trailed down his chest lightly.

"I'm humoring you."

"You'd say anything right now," she accused.

"You're right," he agreed. He carefully undid one button on her blouse. Just one. The he again leaned down and gave her one of those hard, deep kisses. "Tell me what you need to hear, and I'll say it." He unfastened another button.

"There's nothing I need to hear," she laughed. "You can tell me whatever you want—it'd just be nice if it were true."

"The truth, huh? No one wants to hear the truth. The truth is never sexy. But you…" The last button came undone, and he spread her shirt away. "You are too goddamned sexy to be real." I could imagine what he saw. Smooth, soft white skin scented like flowers. Slender little snag-able waist and rounded little hips. A lacy white bra concealing a pair of small yet perfectly formed breasts. I could feel through her that the lace was itchy, but she didn't care.

I understood what was going on now, all of it. This was the moment. Their first time having sex. It was just them and the way they felt about each other right now. She was, as I said, really freaking happy.

This made it really fucking hard to get out of her head. I had no right to witness this nor did I want to. And no way in hell did I want to have sex with _Christian_! Even if he wasn't a guy (oh, scary thought), he was still a jackass to me most of the time! I tried to focus my energies to separate myself from her, which would've been easy if not for what happened next.

He bent his head to her nipple and bit it, letting out a little growl that made Lissa gasp. He licked it once and she, and by extension I, gasped again. Then when he took that pert little rosy tip into his mouth, wetness dripped down my legs. No! Down _Lissa's_ legs. Her head was thrown back, cheeks flushed. She was biting her lip, letting out these hot little whimpers that lit me up.

Shit!

He kept devouring her pert little breasts until she told him to go lower. I could only pay attention to Lissa as I felt her hands grasp and clutch the blanket, as her skin covered with goosebumps as he teased her, and how her heart was thumping. When he finally reached the grand prize, her moans reverberated off the walls. She bucked into his face as he used his mouth again to pleasure her. And damn was he doing it well!

They were driving themselves crazy, driving _me_ crazy, high on love and carnal pleasure. Lissa was practically in delirium. He kept working her clit with his tongue and a little with his fingers, drinking down her wetness until she couldn't speak; only mumble little incongruous syllables that could've been words. And oh god. Oh god, oh god, ohgod ohgod oh, **Oh Sweet Jesus!**

She screamed into the night as she climaxed and so did I (in my mind). Her body arched, I could see it bend in the flickering shadows cast by the candle light. And then it came down again. She was panting heavily as he slid up her body again, kissing her and allowing us to taste her. I groaned in my head as Lissa groaned into his lips. She could feel his hard arousal against her center. He got off a moment to put on a condom, and then with little preamble he trust inside her. Her squeal became a moan when he set a slow and steady pace in and out of her. Every thrust sent lightning bolts of pleasure and joy through her whole body. They were so strong I, I…

"_That's right, darling." She was above me like a goddess, Her beautiful blonde hair touching my face, our fingers intertwined and pressed into the mattress. She was moving above me, sliding the toy She'd strapped on in and out of my slippery core. With every thrust in Her breasts pressed against mine. She placed kisses and licks up and down my throat, drawing moan after loud moan out of me. "You're so beautiful, Rose. So beautiful it hurts sometimes. Such a sweet pain. Everything you are, your adorable face" She kissed my cheek "your curvy, luscious body" She kissed my breast "your perfect, pure soul" She kissed my lips "all of it kills me and makes me feel so alive all at once." She sped up Her thrusts, pressing us together and holding my head to Her neck. She in turn put Her mouth to my flesh and worshipped me. _

_I wrapped my arms around Her and tried to reciprocate, relishing the sweet taste of Her sweaty skin and the smell of jasmine in Her hair. I was so close, so dreadfully close, and She knew it from the sounds I was making. She slowed everything down, increasing the gentle pounding force She was exerting. She kissed me, so gentle and loving, velvety tongue exploring my mouth, tenderly pillaging me. When we separated for air, She pressed our foreheads together._

"_Come for me, darling. Show me how beautiful you truly are. Come for me." All it took was those words. I climaxed with screams that She devoured them. My entire body arched and twisted into Hers, and She happily held me there. All the while, She continued those loving shoves, slowly helping me down from my high. When I was reduced to weak shakes, She withdrew and settled onto me. "That was so wonderful, my Rose. Your screams, your writhing, your aftershock shivers… they all light a passion so deep in me."_

"_Then maybe I should do something about it," I panted, pulling Her down into a somewhat sloppy kiss from my exhaustion. She smiled gleefully and I took the strap-on off. I tossed it aside and flipped our positions. "Now it's my turn to see how beautiful __**you**__ are."_

**WHAM!**

I hit my bedroom floor with a thud. I gasped for breath, my arms wrapping around my body protectively. I looked wildly around the room. Yes, I was back in my dorm room. My backpack lay discarded beside me.

But…

If I was back here, then… I wasn't with Her…

I'd never been with Her at all.

None of it had been real.

A wracking sob choked me, doubling me over into the fetal position. I trembled violently as big fat tears rolled down my face. _No, no, it can't be over! My Love, my Goddess, come back to me! Please, Baby, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry! I didn't know they were firing a gun. I didn't hear the shots before it was too late. You have to know I would've stopped them if I'd known! Oh, Baby, please, forgive me! Come back to me! Come back!_

It was all too much. Everything, the love, the lust, the soul-ripping, gut-wrenching, heart-shattering agony, built into one reverberating scream. It was a dying lion's roar, an eagle's call for the chicks they already knew were lost, the howl of the wolf whose life-mate was dead.

I screamed and screamed for god knows how long. I think I went hoarse after a certain point, but I was too far gone to know the exact moment.

"Roza!" I felt something on my arm. A hand. It shook me, but it didn't matter. The pain was so intense it fogged my mind to anything else. It kept shaking, and that voice kept repeating the same things. "Roza, snap out of it! It is me, Dimitri. Come on, Roza, come back to us. Snap out of it!" I only curled up into a smaller ball and continued sobbing.

"Dimka, you must sedate her. She isn't going to calm down without help. Here," said a woman. I felt another hand pinch something a pressure point in my neck, and most everything descended into darkness.

**AN: Soooo, yeah. Hetero and voyeurism turned to slash in a flashback, which turned into an emotional breakdown and another revelation. That was not how I planned this chapter originally but whatever.**

**Aw, Dimitri and Tasha came to help Rose! I may not like Rose and Dimitri as a couple, but they can be cute together on rare occasions and Dimka can be really sweet.**

**Did anyone notice how in Christian and Lissa's part, Rose never went in any real detail about Christian beyond what he was doing to Lissa? Her attention was entirely focused on Lissa. This is (as if there weren't enough already) another implication that Rose is "**_**technically**_**" bi or used to be bi, but really she's just gay. End of story.**

**And you now know what happened to Her. She was shot and killed and Rose blames herself (at least subconsciously) for Her death. I'm sad now.**

**Anyway, it'll probably take the usual amount of time for the next chapters, as I don't quite know what all is going to happen in them at this time. See you then. Review! Russia commands you!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Hey guys! Okay, thing to know here. This chapter was co-written by me and my pal FireStorm Runner who you guys should totally check out, even if you don't read the books she posts for just yet. She wrote the first part and I finished it out. This is a friendship based chapter between Rose and AJ (she is becoming important, like I said.) Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Ben own Vampir Akademisi (anyone who can figure out what language this is gets a cookie)**

Chapter 11

Rose

I groaned before anything else even registered in my mind. Groggily, I blinked my eyes open to a blank, white ceiling. Wait, where was I again? After blinking several dozen times to clear the sleep from my eyes, I looked around the room. Pale walls, plain cot, some medical equipment…I was in the infirmary. Shit!

The memories flooded back to me. Lissa was with Christian and I somehow got pulled into it. That triggered the memories and-oh God. I swallowed back the tears threatening to spill again, don't think about that now! The last thing I remembered was Dimitri and Tasha finding me in my room. They must have brought me here.

Sighing, I shifted to get out of the cot and felt something on my arm. I looked to see a Band-Aid and realized they must have _sedated_ me and brought me here. Wonderful, fan-fucking-tastic. Though, looking back at my mental state at the time, it was probably for the best.

Checking to make sure I wasn't connected to an IV or anything, I got out of the cot to stretch my legs. They were wobbly, probably due to remaining effects of the sedative used on me, but I would live. I walked out of the room and into the "waiting area." No one was there, which I found odd and surprisingly irresponsible for a school infirmary, but I'd take my luck and slipped out. Should I have stayed? Yeah, probably, but then I would have been asked questions I had no desire to answer. The very thought of Her still brought the feelings of despair.

So instead of waiting around, I left to go back to the dorms. The cold air felt good, and I noticed that the sun was just beginning to rise in the east. I smiled a bit, She liked staying up sometimes to watch the sunrise. No, I don't want to go there! Just look at what happened last time!

When I snapped out of my thoughts back to Earth, I found myself outside of the dorm doors. I walked in to find a lot of people still up and in the rec area. Not wanting to talk to anyone, I started walking past without so much as a "hi." I was heading for the stairs when I caught sight of a familiar face. AJ was curled up in a chair in the corner, not talking, just people watching.

Come to think of it, I wasn't tired and probably shouldn't be alone…not after what happened. I need a good distraction, and AJ was the only friendly face there, plus I felt bad for her being alone at the time.

So instead of going up to my room like I intended, I walked over to the new girl. "Hey AJ."

She looked up to me in surprise, I apparently shook her from thoughts, but she smiled a bit at me anyway. "Hi, Rose. Would you like to sit?" she offered and pointed to the chair across from her.

"Thanks," I nodded and sat down. It was awkward for only a moment or two.

"So…uh…how are you feeling?" AJ asked to break the silence.

Great, she knew! "How many people know?" I asked worriedly.

"Well…" she trailed off, "You made a pretty loud ruckus and…news travels fast," she answered, her tone a bit bitter at the end.

Fuck. "I'm feeling better now. Not great, but better. What are they saying happened?"

She shrugged. "All sorts of things. Some people think you got injured in training. Other people say you had a nervous breakdown. Then of course there are those who say you got drunk or high and just started yelling for the heck of it."

I grimaced, and she courteously stopped talking about it.

"At least you're feeling better some," she said in an effort to comfort. Then she turned her attention back to the others in the area. No one even gave her a glance, but I was thankful she didn't push the subject any further.

"You know, AJ, you aren't going to get anywhere if you don't get yourself out there and introduce yourself," I advised.

AJ gave me a look of confusion and I continued. "I mean, I understand that new girl adjusting thing, but you aren't going to adjust well if you don't have many friends. You're a nice enough girl, they'll like you."

She looked at me like I was nuts, "It isn't personality and sociability that's the problem here. I'm surprised you and Mason have been so nice to me!"

It was my turn to be confused, "Why?"

"I'm an illegitimate Ivashkov," AJ answered.

Still confused. "Aren't we all illegitimate royals in some aspects?" Well, I wasn't, but still.

"My father is still with my mother." Oh, okay, that was different. When all I did was stare at her in surprise and confusion, the girl continued, "I was conceived by a blood whore during the beginning years of my father's marriage to a Zeklos. I didn't know who my father was growing up, as most Dhampirs don't, but I got money and some presents for holidays that me and my mom couldn't afford. I also knew my mom went out a lot and her friends called her a 'lucky one.' Fast-forward to this year while I'm at Alder. This scandal got leaked somehow and perpetuated everywhere. Essentially, the news coverage of this slaughtered my family's name, even worse when my father, an Ivashkov, chose a blood whore over his own wife. People _HATE_ my mom and me now and look at us like dirt, especially the queen because we ruined her 'perfect family.' At Alder, my friends turned against me, some of my mentors refused to teach me, some of the guys treated me as nothing more than a blood whore, and I got into a fight with my apparent half-sister, Katia, her friend Tori Zeklos, and Annie Badica. I won, but asked for a transfer and here I am at St. Vlad's not getting much better treatment…but no fights," AJ explained, insanely calm over the whole incident.

Over the whole recount, I found myself getting more and more pissed. "That's a bunch of bullshit!" I exclaimed.

She shrugged, "So it may be. I'm surprised you didn't know."

I haven't been here for quite a while…"I don't follow politics much." That was true too.

"That explains it," AJ nodded.

I sighed and looked at this 17-year-old girl sitting alone in a chair in a new school. Poor thing. "Well AJ, if there's one thing that I can promise is that I'll have your back. And Mason is a genuinely good guy, so he will too," I told her.

She grinned up at me and nodded, "Thanks Rose. That means more than you could ever imagine."

I nodded again and rolled my neck, stretching the muscles there. They hurt from being in the cot in the infirmary probably. Really what I needed was a massage, preferably by soft, familiar, skilled hands running down my bare back… Her body pressed closely to mine to the point I can feel her breath and hair against my neck. "So, other than the people, how do you like St. Vlad's?" I asked, snapping back to reality and hoping she didn't notice the spacing out.

Either AJ didn't notice or chose not to say anything. "It's pretty nice actually, it has much better scenery than Alder," she answered.

"We're in the middle of the woods," I commented, "You're coming from another school in the middle of the woods. How could it be any different?" I asked.

She giggled a bit, "I don't know, I just like the landscaping and architecture better here than what Alder had."

"Alrighty then," I agreed with a shrug, "I'll just go with what you say here."

"I don't know, it's not even that," she sighed, "It's just… a change of scenery and people was what I needed after everything, and any place is better than Alder."

"And that's understandable after everything you've been through," I agreed again. Her comment about a change of people made me remember Mason's first reaction to her… change of people. "And while you may not be getting a ton of friendly reactions… a change of people is something good that happened to you."

AJ looked at me and blinked, "I don't follow…"

I grinned a little bit. I could have some fun with this, "Mason is where I'm going with this."

"Again… I don't follow."

"Oh, come on," I said. "Either you're more than a little blind, dear one, or you've noticed him not so subtly checking you out."

"Oh… that," she said, and she looked away blushing.

I chuckled. "Yes, that."

"He's… he's cool, I guess," she stammered, fidgeting, but not looking displeased in the slightest.

"You guess? How long have you spent with the boy?"

She flushed another shade of red. "We've… talked a few times. He's nice… and funny."

I gifted her with a warm smile. "That he is. And even more so when you get to know him better." I looked at her for a long moment. "You want to get to know us, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. It's just…" But she didn't finish. Instead she stood up. "I should go."

Well, I certainly wasn't going to let this end like that. I grabbed her shoulder and turned her back to face me. "Just what, AJ?

She bit her lip nervously. "Just… Look, I'm sorry, but… it's just that people _scare_ me, these days. It's hard to trust them."

"You can trust us, AJ," I said. "That's a promise."

She shook her head. "It's not people like you that scare me. You and Mason are really nice, Christian and Lissa too. It's everyone else. If they see that we're friends, or that you're just talking to me, I'm afraid of what they'll say about you. Rumors were everywhere at Alder, and they were cruel. I don't want the only people who don't want to **exorcise** me from their lives to suffer **because** of me."

I rolled my eyes. "How noble of you," I said sardonically. I put an arm around her shoulder. "AJ, we already deal with rumors. If we have to deal with a few more for you, then so be it."

"I hope you won't regret it," she muttered.

"Never," I said. She looked at her feet. "Hey," I said, lifting her chin with my hand. "Don't get all depressed on me. Come on, I know what could cheer you up. You like kids?"

**Aw. Never fear, AJ, Rose and ****Mason**** will protect you. They'll also stand by and laugh when you pound the crap out of someone in some future scene.**

**Ain't Tatiana a bitch?**


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

AJ

Needless to say, I was confused when Rose asked me if I liked kids. I did, actually, but I had no clue why she asked me. Though, I was coming to realize that Rose was in general a very odd person. She kept her arm around my shoulder as she led outside and onto the path toward the elementary building. It wasn't uncomfortable, but I silently noted how she held me close enough that our sides were brushing with each step. That in itself was nothing of great significance, but there were other things I was starting to notice about Rose.

I suppose none of it could be called obvious. I figured I was just being stalker-ish to learn more about the only four people who were friendly to me. It was little things, always little things that caught my attention. One of which being that Rose had a habit of… _touching_ people, for lack of a better term. Like I said, it was subtle, but every now and then I'd notice that she would brush up against people, mainly girls, a little too closely to be an entirely innocent thing. One time I saw her and Lissa talking together in the hall. Rose reached out and put a hand on Lissa's side and lightly squeezed. It was the definition of a caress, at least in my perspective. I supposed best friends might do that (I really wouldn't know, but I didn't dwell on that), and Lissa didn't act like it was anything out of the ordinary, but she kept her hand there just a second too long. It raised my suspicions. That was just one time. There were others just like it, hard to pick up on if you weren't looking.

I'd also see her looking at other girls too. I remembered with clarity my first day in training. I could feel her eyes on me, looking me up and down, not with malice or even curiosity, but admiration. I'd dismissed it that day as my imagination, but barely a day later I caught her doing it again, to me and a tiny bit to Meredith. Her eyes would follow Lissa sometimes, watching her every move with rapt interest.

One time, we had both been passing through the common room when a re-run of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I heart Spike! Yes, I'm a geek, and I'm damn proud of it!) and two of my favorite characters, Willow and Tara, who were in a relationship, shared a quick peck on screen. I remembered seeing Rose stop in her tracks and stare at the screen at several long seconds. Her eyes sorta glazed over for a moment, but then she hastily shook it off and hurriedly left the room.

Now I wondered: was Rose gay? Bisexual? I'd never seen her look at guys with anything stronger than sisterly affection. So… was she gay, or did she just not know what she wanted? That didn't seem right. Rose was the epitome of "I know what I want and I'm going to take it, so anyone who says otherwise can go fuck themselves".

But then I remembered just what world we lived in, and my thoughts took a dark turn. Damn vampire society. Everything was appearances, and being different could get you shunned or even physically harmed. If Rose was gay, then she must feel that she was safer staying in the closet, at least until she was free of the Academy. I reckoned that she would face less trouble than, say, a Moroi like Lissa, who was pressured into marrying some royal guy and make dozens of Moroi babies to boost the population (I pointedly chose not to think about all the eventual inbreeding that would occur and was already occurring among the royals… ew). But it would still be hard, and a tough thing to let other people know.

I imagined if she really trusted someone, like Lissa, she would tell them. Hmm.

Something to know about me: when I'm deep in thought, I kinda don't have a filter over what I say. If I did, I could've saved both of us from what happened next.

"Hey, Rose, are you gay?"

Oh shit.

My eyes got huge as I realized what I'd said. Rose had frozen in her tracks, and it seemed like the world was frozen too.

Can you say awkward fast enough?

"Oh god, Rose!" I stammered. "I, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to blurt that out."

"Yeah, well… uh," she mumbled, scrambling to find something to say just as much as I was. We had stepped away from each other, blushing madly. "I… I'm sorry if I made you un, uncomfortable. I, I didn't mean to, I swear!"

Ah hell. "No, no!" I said quickly. "I wasn't uncomfortable. Look, I'm really sorry. I have no idea what I say sometimes."

"Okay, fine, but…" She struggled to voice her thoughts. Her voice got really tiny. "How… how did you know?"

I gulped nervously, looking down at my feet. "I didn't really. I suspected. It's just… I'm overly observant sometimes. Believe me; it's not at all obvious. I just have a problem with noticing the littlest things that no one should really notice. That was it. I'm sorry and I understand if you want to run away as fast as possible."

She shook her head. "I don't but… I, I can trust you not to go yelling it around the school, right?"

I nodded vigorously. "Oh, definitely! Rose, I would never tell anyone if you didn't want me to! I swear."

She shut her eyes and breathed out a shaky sigh, putting her hands on her hips and nodding to herself. When her eyes opened again, she looked calm. "Okay, good. Thank you, AJ. I'm not… ready for a lot of people to know, I guess." There was something sad and bitter in her eyes that bothered me, but I set it aside.

"Would you rather I didn't know at all?"

She hesitated. "It feels… nice… in a weird way to have someone know, someone I can trust. It's like a burden has been lifted now that I have to hide from one less person." Again, there was that flash of somber in her brown eyes.

I grinned sadly, thinking back to my earlier musings. "It's a harsh world for people like us, isn't it?"

I don't think I was supposed to hear what she said next, but there's my stalker talent again. "It wasn't always," she whispered. Then she nodded to my statement and shook herself. In a normal voice, she said, "Well, if you still want to, we can keep going where we were supposed to originally."

I nodded, trying to put some lightheartedness back into things. "Yes, you were taking me to a mysterious place with small children, correct?"

She smiled slightly. "Yeah. Come on, I do have something to show you, or rather someone for you to meet."

We started walking again, reaching the elementary building. She led me down a series of hallways until we reached what I assumed was the nursery. The door was painted with soft colors and happy pictures for kids. Rose had a quick word with an African American employee and then took me inside. The sound of rattles and cooing babies gently filled our ears as we entered the main room, filled with blue and pink cribs. She moved to one particular blue one and her face lit up as she looked in it. She gestured for me to move closer and lifted a little baby boy out of the crib. It awed me how her entire demeanor changed as she held him. She went from sad and uncomfortable to elated and maternal all for this little boy.

"AJ, I'd like you to meet Alyec Lukas Badica. Alyec, this is AJ," she said. She took Alyec's little hand and held it up. I grinned at what she wanted and reached out. He grasped my fingers firmly as I shook his little hand.

"Nice to meet you, Alyec." The little corners of his mouth lifted as he gazed at me. I looked at Rose.

"How old is he?"

"Almost two months," she murmured, kissing his forehead. "Just starting to smile."

"He's adorable," I said, watching his grasp my index fingers curiously. "How did you meet him?"

Rose frowned, but shook it off. "Did you hear about the Badica killings?"

My eyes widened. "_He's_ the child that was rescued?" Rose nodded grimly.

"I was the one to find him. I was supposed to take my Qualifier with Arthur Schoenberg and instead got a VIP pass to a slaughterhouse. I just thank god he's safe, if not anyone else."

"That's so sad," I whispered. Alyec's tiny grin vanished as he read the emotional atmosphere and let out a little noise. Rose started rocking him again.

"It is. But he's safe now, driving the poor nursery staff insane. I'm proud of him already." She smirked. "I'm lucky. They let come and see him. They actually like it when I come because then he's calm and quiet."

"He sees you as his mother," I whispered in awe. Rose looked off into space and smiled slightly, but the emotion in her eyes was stunning. She looked so happy.

We stayed a little longer in the nursery before having to depart. We took our time getting back, talking about lighter things, Christmas, the ski trip… happy things. Throughout the conversation, I noticed several times that Rose spaced out briefly. Only for a few seconds each, but she got faraway looks in her eyes and blissful smiles before she would respond to something.

It was something to see, but after our previous _conversation_ I chose not to comment. I did, however, give her a curious grin when she blushed darkly (like seriously red) at the mention of decorative bows and wrapping paper. She pointedly ignored me.

I put my hand on her shoulder when it was time to go our separate ways for now. "Thanks, Rose, for everything today. It's nice to have a friend."

"It is," she said. "And thanks for being so understanding. You can't imagine how much better I feel."

"No problem," I said, shrugging.

I was about to go when she called me back. "Our group is holding a small party in one of the small guest parlors in this place on Christmas morning. No big crowds, no royals other than Christian, Lissa, and Christian's awesome aunt. Mason and Eddie will be there, and Dimitri will also."

"Guardian Belikov?" I raised an eyebrow incredulously.

She chuckled. "He may look all intimidating and antisocial and Russian, and he is sometimes, but deep down he's a softy."

I grinned at the thought. "That sounds nice. I'll do it."

"Great! Either Mason or I will get you from your room and take you there if you don't want to risk getting lost in this wretchedly mazelike place."

I laughed at the irritated way she said "wretchedly mazelike place". It seemed like such a Rose thing to say. "Sure. I'll see you then."

"Bye," she said, and walked away.

A Christmas party… with real people, nice people. I couldn't wait.


	14. Chapter 13

**Jesus Frigging Christ! I'm so sorry, peeps! My muse and I have only just got back on speaking terms. I don't know how long it will last. Anyway, here's the long-awaited chapter. 14 is deep in progress too. Reviews are rewarded with candy!**

**Disclaimer: I own Alyec, and Rose's wife. I share custody of AJ with FireStorm Runner. I own most of the plot (minus the bits quoted from the books of course), and nothing else.**

Chapter 13

Rose

Mason texted me on Christmas morning, telling me he would get AJ. I smiled and shook my head. He was so cute and obvious when he was excited about something. It was heartwarming. I could see the scene playing out in my head. Mason would show up at her door, knock a little too exuberantly until she opened the door. AJ would go into shy mode and Mason wouldn't notice a thing. They might chat for a little while with AJ slipping further and further into shy mode before finally heading off to the parlor.

With that adorable thought in mind, I finished getting dressed. Tasha was hosting this little get-together. Lots of group activities and parties were occurring throughout the school, but I'd noticed that Tasha's presence always created a disturbance. People either secretly stared or went out of their way to avoid her. That saddened me. I knew two Tashas, from two different worlds, and both of them were honorable women, women who at the very least deserved respect if not deference. Today it seemed that this Tasha, perhaps I'll call her Tasha 1 for being from my home dimension, had decided to stay out of the way of other royals and lay low.

The guest parlor she had chosen was very nice. Gleaming tureens hid delicious smelling food under them and a sitting area of ornate, durable furniture greeted those who entered. Elegant paintings and portraiture pleased the eyes and small bouquets of winter flowers added a finishing touch. I was one of the first to arrive. Christian and Lissa—I couldn't look at them for very long without shuddering—were talking to Tasha on the couch. They were the only ones there. I joined them while we all waited for the rest of our little group to come.

And Dimka even dressed up a little! Aw! Okay, it was just a sweater but still. His hair was combed and pulled back and he had shaved, leaving his face clean and smooth. When Christian and Lissa left the room for a moment, he went over to talk to Tasha. I did a fist pump (just a little one) at the easy way they communicated with each other.

"Five?" Dimitri asked in surprise. They were discussing a friend's children. "I hadn't heard that."

Tasha nodded. "It's insane. I swear, I don't think his wife's had more than six months off between kids. She's short, too—so she just gets wider and wider."

"When I first met him, he swore he didn't even want kids."

Her eyes widened excitedly. "I _know_! I can't believe it. You should see him now. He just melts around them. I can't understand him half the time. I swear, he speaks more baby talk than English."

Dimitri smiled his rare smile. "Well, children do that to people."

"I can't imagine it happening to _you_," she laughed. _Well, you better start imagining, Tash. I want my little Belikov-Ozera tykes_, I thought. "You're always so stoic. Of course… I suppose you'd be doing baby talk in Russian, so no one would ever know."

They both laughed and I smiled before turning away to Mason and AJ finally arriving.

"What took you two so long?" I wasn't teasing them, no (I wouldn't do that, would I? *Innocent smile. Theater audience screams: the halo's fake!*). I smirked when AJ blushed and Mason looked a little too proud of himself.

"N-nothing," she stammered. I just smiled and patted her on the back.

"Come on. There's food waiting to be eaten," I said. The three of us, as was only natural for a trio of teenage Dhampirs, ate most of it. It was a good thing the others had already gotten food, because it was almost gone by the time we were through.

I was chatting with Mason when Lissa came up to me. She handed a little box. "Your Christmas present," she said.

I opened the box and stared inside. I saw a string of maroon-colored beads, and the scent of roses floated out. "What the…"

I lifted the beads out, and a heavy gold crucifix swung from the end of them. She'd given me a _chotki_. It was similar to a rosary, only smaller. Bracelet-size. "Are you trying to convert me?" I asked wryly. Lissa wasn't a religious nut, but she believed in God and attended church regularly. Like many Moroi families who'd come from Russia and Eastern Europe, she was an Orthodox Christian.

Me? I was pretty much an Orthodox Agnostic. I learned the hard way that God probably existed, but really couldn't care less about me. So I didn't care about him. Tit for tat. Lissa respected that—even if she didn't know my reasons—and never tried to push her faith on me, which made the gift that much weirder.

"Flip it over," she said, clearly amused at my shock.

I did. On the back of the cross, a dragon wreathed in flowers had been carved into the gold. The Dragomir crest. I looked up at her, puzzled.

"It's a family heirloom," she said. "One of my dad's good friends has been saving boxes of his stuff. This was in it. It belonged to my great-grandmother's guardian."

"Liss…" I said. The chotki took on a whole new meaning. "I can't… you can't give me something like this."

"Well, I certainly can't keep it. It's meant for a guardian. My guardian."

I wound the beads around one wrist. The cross felt cool against my skin. I looked back at Lissa and pulled her into a hug. "Thank you, sister. I will cherish it," I whispered to her. She hugged me back tightly.

"You're welcome, you remarkable sap," she said back. We pulled apart after a moment, and Tasha started to say something, then stopped when she looked up at the door.

"Janine!"

My mother stood there, looking as stiff and impassive as ever. "Sorry I'm late," she said. "I had some business to take care of."

Of course she did.

I straightened up, my guardian mask slipping on. She had not sent a word to me about our fight. I worried where it would leave us now.

She sat down with us and soon joined in the conversation. Her topic: guardian business. She got to talking about a fight she was in that was similar to the Badica attack. I listened in, but was only somewhat focused on it. I was listening to see if she made any mention of strange things like Omertà. Strigoi, as I had come to learn, had a unique understanding of the world that no other creature could ever truly understand. They lived in the dark, and they knew it. They reveled in it, but deep down, they feared their compatriots for also living with dark hearts. That was what really made it hard for them to band together, not their selfishness or short tempers. That's not to say it wasn't impossible. In fact, I had seen it plenty of times. I learned that when they can join together, they're three times as dangerous.

My mother made no mention of anything like that, so I let it go. But I needed to look into this more. My gut told me the Badica attack wasn't the first or the last. If I had the chance I would sneak into Alberta office and check the records. What I really needed were the resources at Court.

I felt Lissa get queasy through the bond. Oh, maybe I forgot to mention my mother was talking in great detail about decapitation.

I remained silent. Eventually, the gathering dispersed. I got up to make my way to the dhampir dorm while everyone else went off to do their own thing.

Except my mother. She caught up with me.

**Next chapter: Janine's point of view!**


	15. Chapter 14

**It's Janine! Just like I promised. Now seriously, guys, **_**review! **_**This is my first time writing in Janine's point of view. I need feedback to know if I did okay or not. So if you don't normally review the stories you read, please, for me, just tell me **_**something**_** of what you thought. It can be as simple as "this was good" or "this needs works".**

**Disclaimer: Alyec is all mine. I think some other random characters you haven't met yet are all mine too. The unique plot is mine. I have joint custody of AJ, and in some ways, I'm pretty sure I do in fact own Rose's wife. Everything else, I'm fairly certain is not mine.**

Chapter 14

Janine **(Yay!)**

Neither of us said anything. Stars cluttered the black sky, sharp and bright, their glitter matched in the ice and snow around us. I kept pace with Rose all the way into the dhampir dorm. I didn't know how to begin. My eyes kept drifting to the bruise that wrapped around her neck, hidden under makeup, but still visible.

"I've been wanting to talk to you," I finally said, and waited to see how she would respond.

"You want to go to my room?" She asked quietly.

_Her room?_ Talk about your uncharted territory. But I didn't back down. "Sure," I said.

She led me upstairs, keeping a safe distance away as we walked. Awkward tension built between us. She didn't say anything when we reached her room, but went to sit on the bed. I couldn't stop my eyes from surveying the room, the paranoia of a guardian compelling to make sure we were alone. When I was sure, I really looked around the room. Everything was new to me. _Of course, it is,_ I scolded myself. _What the hell do you really know about her?_ My eyes caught on a stack of books. I put my fingers under the titles. They were on animal behavior and evolution.

"Are these for a report?" I asked.

"No, I'm just interested in it, that's all."

My eyebrows rose. I obviously hadn't known that. _How interested is she? What other subjects does she like?_

I looked at the other things on her desk. A box of SweeTarts, a picture of her and Vasilisa dressed as fairies. It couldn't have been taken more than two years ago, but I was legitimately startled by the differences between the Rose in the photo and the one currently watching me form her bed. Sure, pictures can lie, but I couldn't help but feel these two Roses were fundamentally distinct from each other, two separate people. This Rose in the picture was bright and happy, smiling radiantly for the camera with her arm linked with the princess's. I hadn't seen Rose really smile in the whole time I've been here. She smiled when Lissa gave her the chotki, but other than that…

The thing that really caught my attention was the dagger by her bedside lamp. It was a beautiful Kukri blade, made from silver and very, very sharp. Lethal? I reached for it to get a better look, but before I could touch it, a hand grabbed my wrist and pinned it to the desk. I looked over at Rose. Her face held an incredibly dark expression, lips set in a tight frown, eyes full of some negative emotions I couldn't fully decipher. She shook her head and pulled my hand away from the dagger. I didn't protest, though I wanted to. She sheathed the dagger and strapped it to her side.

She went back to the bed, and the awkward silence dragged on. Finally, I couldn't stand it anymore and shoved my hand in front of her. "Here."

She raised a wary eyebrow, but extended her hand. I dropped the pendant into her hand. I felt an odd empty spot inside me, giving up the _nazar_ Ibrahim had gifted me with, but I knew he would like his daughter to have it. I knew it was just a superstition, but part of me hoped it would, in fact, give her protection. From something, some unknown force.

"A _nazar_?" She asked, surprised. She traced its features with a curious finger. I almost did a double take when she knew what it was, but I controlled it. She looked back up at me.

"Yes," I managed to say.

She glanced down at the pendant again, and her mouth quirked. "Keeping away the evil eye. Always handy. Thank you." She sounded sincere and still a little surprised. "I… I didn't get you anything."

I shook my head. "That's fine. I don't need anything." Unable to stand being still, I started pacing again. I was still so nervous _**around my own child**_. It was embarrassing and depressing. _Moroi mothers never have to leave their daughters_, I thought bitterly, and then shoved the thought aside. I couldn't change the way things were, not alone. It was take the job guarding Lord Szelsky or go to a commune; go back to _my_ mother. I couldn't exactly raise a child while being a guardian, and I would never have considered having Rose grow up in a commune. So the only option left was to send her to the Academy and almost never see her. She wouldn't have a mother, but at least she would have a chance, an education, a future. It was a no-win situation, but I didn't have the time or energy to brood about it now. I sighed inwardly. _What's done is done_.

"How's your neck?" I asked abruptly, glancing back at her. She was watching me intently. I wondered if she could read what I was feeling.

"Getting better."

"Good." I said shortly. I wanted to say I was sorry, but a hard knot was forming in my throat and I didn't want it to show. I started pacing again. I think she finally got tired of the inactivity because she started putting her presents away. She hung up the red silk dress Tasha had gotten her. It was beautiful, and it would look great on Rose. Perhaps too great. I worried then, but fought not to let it show. I knew what rested in the hearts and minds of the Moroi, especially the royal males. That dress was tight…

"That was nice of Tasha," I bit out. I hoped she didn't catch it.

Rose smiled. It wasn't a _real_ smile, not like the one in the photo. It was a fond smile, a smile you might give when humoring the antics of a close friend. "Yes," she agreed. "I didn't know she was going to get me anything. I really like her." She chuckled softly for no reason I could decipher.

"Me too."

I was astonished. Had we just agreed on something? But Rose only turned and grinned at me. Her eyes were full of quiet laughter. Maybe Christmas miracles did happen sometimes.

"Guardian Belikov will be a good match for her."

"I—" She blinked. "Dimitri?"

"Guardian Belikov," I corrected sternly.

"What kind of match?" She asked. What was that in her tone? Expectation? Hope?

I raised an eyebrow. "You haven't heard? She's asked him to be her guardian—since she doesn't have one."

She nodded thoughtfully. "Well, they _are_ good friends. It makes sense."

"More than that—or possibly could be."

"What?"

"Hmm? Oh. She's _interested_ in him." I could care less about the romantic state of a royal Moroi, even if it was someone I liked. It wasn't my business and I didn't want to be.

_Whoa_… The way she looked when I said that though was like looking at the sun. Her face lit up and that _**that**_ was a real smile. She looked absolutely ecstatic. "Really?" Was all she could seem to say.

I nodded. The way she just changed like that, her entire demeanor completely turned around had left me temporarily speechless.

"Is he going to do it?"

I shrugged. "He hasn't agreed yet, but of course he will. It's a great opportunity."

"Yes… Yes it is." She suddenly looked deep in thought. Her hand even came up to stroke her chin. I could practically hear the wheels turning in her mind.

"I almost did that," I said, before realizing I had said it. She pulled out of her thoughts to look at me.

"With my dad?" She asked. She didn't sound angry or resentful. She spoke calmly, non-judgmentally. I nodded, swallowing back the knot. "Why didn't you?"

I sighed. "Things got complicated."

"Isn't that the way of the world," she murmured. Her eyes reflected a sadness that was all her own, its cause unknown to me. "Everything is complicated."

"It is," I agreed.

"Do… do you still have contact with him anymore?"

How to answer… "If I need to reach him, I will reach him."

She nodded, seemingly satisfied. Neither of us said anything else for a long minute.

Finally, she puffed out a breath. "Well, I'm really tired. Thank you for the _nazar_, but if you don't mind…"

"No, it's okay." I got to my feet. I opened my mouth to say… goodbye? I'll be seeing you around?

I didn't have to say anything. "I'm glad we talked," she said, coming to stand in front of me. "I've been wanting to since you got here. I'm sorry it took so long."

I shook my head, but I was still at a loss for words. I think she understood what I meant to say though. "I'll see you later, okay?" The okay sounded uncertain.

"Yes," I said, a little loudly. I shifted my weight from foot to foot before finally turning and moving to the door. Without another word, I left the room. I didn't feel quite so desolate deep down anymore.

**Yay! Mother-daughter semi-awkward bonding!**


	16. Interlude

**Benevenuto, amicos! Here is our next installment! This is an interlude written by my bud Stormy. It's all AJ's point of view of the day of the Christmas party. The official chapter 15 is very nearly done, and we finally get to see the funniest drunk in the whole series! Enjoy.**

**And, I KNOW that people are reading. What I don't know is why I get so few reviews. Please, peeps, don't leave me hanging! I told you last time it doesn't have to be anything special or specific, just a review! Help me out here, please. Five reviews are all I ask before I post chapter 15. Just five.**

**Disclaimer: you get it by now, don't you?**

It was an interesting day, I had to admit. The first thing that I learned was that people have extremely different ideas about when the time 'morning' actually comes about. I suppose you could consider me an early bird, I enjoyed being up when the sun was out still a little bit. Call me a sap, but I loved sunsets, it made the sky really pretty with a bunch of different colors and really, it was just extremely peaceful because hardly anyone else was awake.

Anyway, that's beside the point. I was awake way before the Christmas party was supposed to be starting, and I couldn't force myself to go back to sleep for the life of me. So, I decided to get up and see if the training area was open. The gym was open 24/7 back at Alder, and I didn't see why it would be closed on a Saturday morning here, but the hell if I was going to claim I understood the minds of the people who run our schools.

I threw on a pair of leggings and an overly baggy shirt and then paused, realizing I would need to take some clothes to actually change into for the party. I knew I would probably wind up overworking myself until someone told me I'd have to leave to get to it, so bringing a change of clothes was pretty much required. I grabbed a red sweater and a pair of black slacks from my closet before shoving them into a draw bag (I'm not one to fold things). With that set, I pulled my hair back sloppily into a ponytail and left the dorms with my stuff.

To my delight, the gym was open and no one was around. I went in and set my stuff down in the corner before gathering what I'd need and wrapped my hands in the training tape the gym had. I didn't necessarily like to do things bare-handed and risk injuring myself, but mitts were typically just too much bulk, especially when I wasn't going up against anyone and was no risk to anyone but myself. When that was done, I went over to the punching bag and started doing rounds on it, punching, kicking, basically anything you could train or do on a punching bag.

After about 20 or 30 minutes doing that, I took a break and went over to the wooden stakes. Of course they wouldn't give real stakes to any of the trainees, which was a little bit disheartening since I _had_ worked with real stakes once or twice before at Alder. A little early and too young to be doing that? Maybe, really it just depends on who you ask. So I grabbed one of the wooden ones and went over to one of the dummies in the area. I looked up at it briefly and smirked a bit at the two, sewn in, button eyes looking back at me. Let me tell you, they try to make those things look _so_ lifelike!

After working on stake handling to the point that I was satisfied enough with myself, I decided to move on to the fun part. I went over to my bag and grabbed out my iPod and its speakers and set them up. Flipping through, I found the last song I was looking for and pressed play. Dancing and fighting, they really aren't that far off. That sounds weird, doesn't it? Let me explain.

My mother was a blood whore, and not being a dhampir guardian meant that she was going to raise me one way or another. In order to do that, she needed money, and that money was easiest got by doing what she knew best. And what she knew how to work best was her sex appeal. My mother was, still is I suppose you could say, an extremely attractive woman, a perfect mixture between the Russian and Romanian that ran in her blood. Guys took note of that and paid good money for that…and luckily (or maybe unluckily), she found an easy way to do that. The easiest answer? The VIP room of a strip club. So yes, my mother was basically a classy prostitute.

Point being, she didn't really have anyone to watch over me. My dad wasn't in the picture when I was younger, my two uncles were both full time guardians, and my grandparents sorta kinda disowned her after giving birth to me. They were upset with her decisions on having the baby and not going on to be like her brothers. Factor in the fact that the majority of her friends shared the same employment and work hours, and the fact that she wasn't sending me to school right away (thank _God_ she had some sense talked into her over that), and I wound up being babysat behind the bar by whatever bartender was working that night.

While back there, I saw some things that young girls probably shouldn't have seen. But, as I got older and was enrolled in classes at Alder, I saw the value of the dancing and the strip teases and all that jazz. Women's bodies are extremely flexible and limber as well as extremely strong when having to do some of those positions. Dancing exemplified and enhanced that beyond measures and could easily help with the strength, agility, and flexibility needed when fighting Strigoi. So I learned to manipulate that in such a way to my favor during training.

At Alder, very few knew about this, only some of my teachers and one guy who caught me doing it one day in the gym and teased and flirted with me because of it. I mean, we were friends and all before, but after finding out that I danced, it was even worse (which, in hindsight is entirely gross because he is, in fact, family to me). Anyway, point being was that I didn't want anyone to know about it because it would lead to a lot of questions and an explanation I didn't want to give. 'Oh, I dance because I learned about it when my mother was a glorified hooker' would not lead to such wonderful and wanted results. And after the whole scandal broke out, I hadn't had an ounce of time to myself in order to work on it since…so I was actually quite excited to get back to doing this again.

I went back to the center of the gym, wooden stake still in hand, and started stretching to the start of the music. This particular routine I created consisted of three major parts, stretching in the beginning, a "dance" full of kicking and punches and the occasional tumble, and the ending that I was still trying to work on.

_When we first came here_

_We were cold and we were clear_

_With no colors on our skin_

_Til we let the spectrum in_

_Say my name and every color illuminates_

_We are shining and we'll never be afraid again_

I took a breath as the first verse ended and the beat and drums picked up. That's what I followed through the whole routine, beat, drums, match up footwork with them. That's all you need. It's one of those moments where you lose all touch with your surroundings and at the same time don't, it's a really odd experience, but an enjoyable one. I mean, I knew I was in the gym and my body was reminding me I was putting it through a workout, but my mind was completely clear and blank. I was running off of instincts alone, and while you'd need a mixture of instincts and knowledge during an actual Strigoi fight, you could always enhance knowledge. Instincts though, instincts are much harder to enhance properly.

Midway through, I heard the door to the gym open up, but I didn't bother to stop. I was almost done and I figured it was just a guardian coming to check what all the noise was or possibly train him or herself. They could wait another minute or two.

_So say my name_

_And we'll never be afraid again!_

I spun once and let the stake fly out of my hand. If my calculations and aim were correct, I would have hit the heart of the brown haired dummy in the room. Realizing my eyes were closed, I opened them and looked down the length of my arm and sure enough, the dummy was there with the wooden stake just barely stuck into it. I smirked, it may not have been a direct bull's-eye, but it was pretty damn close…meaning I had gotten better at it than before.

"I know, I know," I commented once I let the music finish and went over to retrieve the stake, "my old teachers would comment too on how impractical and wrong throwing a stake is at a Strigoi because it chances losing your weapon. But with enough calculations and precision, it can actually stake him to kill him, if not at least stun him. Nobody will listen to me when I say that though," I added, figuring it was one of the guardians and he/she was still standing at the door. None of my old teachers necessarily approved of my out-of-the-box thinking method…so I didn't expect the ones here to either.

"I actually thought that was pretty cool and a smart technique."

I whirled around at the voice, managing to effectively trip myself up and land on my ass. _Smooth, AJ, real smooth_. Mason, standing in the doorway with his arms crossed, chuckled and came over, "would you like a hand?"

"Um…thanks," I muttered and blushed, but still taking his hand and hauling myself up, "that uh, wasn't meant to happen."

"I would have never guessed," he responded and grinned, dismantling the wooden stake from the dummy for me, "but seriously, aside from you falling at the end there, that was pretty cool."

Another thing to note about me, I have a tendency to stutter when I'm embarrassed or being praised, especially from a cute guy whom I may or may not have a crush on. _Whom you shouldn't have a crush on_, my mind reprimanded gently. "I…er…well, t-thanks again, I guess," I said and shrugged weakly.

"You're welcome, because it really is clever. Where did you think to do that?" Mason asked as we, or more I and he followed, went over to my bag to pull out my change of clothes.

"My mom and her friends," I answered vaguely and slung my clothes over my shoulder.

"They were dancers?"

I flinched at the question. I knew it would come up, but still, I really didn't want it to. I wasn't about to downright lie to him, but I didn't exactly want him to know the truth either. "They were…lower-class dancers," I clarified as vaguely as I could.

"Lower-class…" he trailed off and I noticed recognition and understanding cross his blue eyes. The fact that I didn't see mockery or malice followed by it was enough to make me breathe a sigh of relief. "Well, still, it's cool you managed to turn it into something useful," he shrugged and grinned at me, "now, do you intend on changing or are you going to the party like that?"

I chuckled just a bit and blushed again. It was then that I realized he was wearing a nice, green polo and a pair of khakis that both fit him pretty well. He looked damn good and…no mind! Do. Not. Want! "Yeah, give me five minutes and I'll be ready," I answered and went into a light jog toward the changing rooms.

"Five minutes? If you're a girl who can get ready in five minutes I'll love you!" Mason called jokingly after me.

Huh, maybe that was enough incentive. Once in the locker room, I quickly stripped of my workout clothes and put on the sweater and slacks I brought with me. After sliding on the small heeled shows, I glanced in the mirror and groaned a bit. Hello hair, meet bird's nest! However, it was nothing a quick braid couldn't fix, and after that was done, I was back out into the gym again.

"That was eight minutes," Mason commented, still waiting for me and leaning up against the doorframe.

I raised an eyebrow, "you were actually timing me?" I asked.

"Of course! I wanted to see if you'd stick to your word," he answered and glanced up, "but I suppose I can award 3 minutes if they'll result into that," he added and looked me over, "it typically takes girls 3 times longer to look as beautiful as you."

Ok, cliché as hell and he was a total sap for saying it…but I still bit my lip and turned beet red anyway. If anything, he knew how to lay it on thick. "Well…again I guess I say thanks," I responded like an idiot. If this were a month or so ago, I'd have some awesome, witty and possibly flirtatious response to it. It was almost ironic how quickly a person could change from one thing.

"So, I know you've only been here a few days…but how do you like St. Vlad's?" Mason asked, thankfully striking up a different conversation entirely.

"It's nice, I mean…people actually like and talk to me here, which is a bonus. After being at Alder for so long, it's a good change of scenery and people, I can't complain," I answered with a shrug and smiled a bit.

"You think you'll be staying?"

I laughed at the, what sounded like, hopefulness in his voice and nodded. "Hopin' for me to stay around, huh? Yeah, I intend to graduate from here, so I think I'll be staying."

"Good. It'd be a shame to lose such a pretty face after only a couple months," Mason agreed and slung an arm around my shoulders.

Surprisingly, I didn't fall to stuttering again. "Man, you really are a flirt aren't you?" I asked teasingly and shrugged off his arm.

He grinned, "Only with the girls I really like."

And that was enough to cause me to falter again. How much of that statement was actually true? How much of that statement could _actually_ be applied to me? _Get a grip,_ I told myself and shook my head to clear those thoughts away before they went into the danger zone. I sighed lightly in response and let the silence reign.

"Well, we're a little late, so hopefully we can just sneak in," he broke the silence as he opened the door and motioned for me with another stupid grin, "ladies first."

I chose to ignore the second part of that, "I mean, I understand the whole being on time as politeness, but it's only 5 minutes so…damn." My argument for that was ended as we walked into the guest room Tasha had chosen to host the party in. It was quite nice, foods, paintings, furniture…I was never one to know or become accustomed to the royalties royals got, so it was a bit surprising to walk into.

"What took you two so long?" Rose's teasing voice shook me out of that thought and back into uncomfortable mode. I told you I had a knack for noticing things about people, little things that most others would miss. This near stalkerish ability led me to believe that Rose was quite similar in the point that she noticed things about others as well…and beyond that, she just _knew_ things. It wouldn't have surprised me if she knew everything that happened between us in the span of 15 minutes. And with the way my mind took some… reckless… turns with Mason that was extremely disconcerting.

"N-nothing," I stammered out and glanced up at her, sure that my face was red for the billionth time in the past hour. When she let it drop and took us to the food, I let out another sigh of relief, both because she let the issue drop and because I was extremely hungry. Hey, I'm a Dhampir, that should be more than enough explanation!

After the three of us nearly cleared out the rest of the food, it was time to socialize, which wasn't as scary as I initially thought. With not a lot of people there and the type of people who were there, it was actually quite comfortable and nice. Actually chancing to leave Rose and Mason's sides, I wound up in a 20 minute conversation with Tasha and Christian about the use of offensive Moroi magic (something my previously mentioned out-of-the-box thinking supported), and then another 15 minutes talking with Christian alone as Lissa spent some time with Rose. He was actually pretty nice once you got around the rough edges. Everyone knew about the Ozera family and what happened all those years ago, just as everyone knew about what my little family branch of Ivashkovs had going on now. We were both outcasts, and though not the best thing, we bonded over that.

And for that matter, his girlfriend was sweet as pie. I hadn't really gotten the chance to talk to many Moroi since getting here, but Lissa was probably one of the kindest people I'd ever met. Not at all snobby or mean like some would expect (and speculated) with her being the last Dragomir. Nope, she started telling me about the school and the people and how I'd always have a place to sit at lunch and a person to talk to in her. She was the second person to tell me that, and I couldn't express how much more weight it lifted off my shoulders.

And then after that was the entrance of Janine Hathaway. Basically everyone knew Janine Hathaway because of her guardian skills and everything that she'd done and all that…and then we heard about one of those times. Every gruesome detail, which I found a little, er, tasteless for a Christmas party. I mean, I was able to handle it since all Dhampirs were quite conditioned in that, but glancing at the Moroi, specifically Lissa, she was not faring as well. I was going to say something about it, but the story about the attack ended and we wound up dispersing before I got the chance.

_That_ was when I noticed Rose leave, and then her mother follow after her. Just based on my knowledge about the two, that might not end well. At all. Seeing as though the last time it happened Rose wound up with a potential concussion…er…just yeah. After waiting a few minutes, I decided I'd check in on Rose before I went back to my room myself and left to follow after them.

"Trying to give me the slip, huh? I never would've expected it from you." I looked back to see Mason following after me once again.

"Now why would I ever do that?" I joked and slowed up to let him catch up, "I just wanted to get back to my room…"

"And pack?" he asked.

"Pack for what?"

"The ski trip," Mason answered. I just stared at him blankly and he sighed, "do you live under a rock or something?"

"A big one apparently," I muttered, "What ski trip? What's going on?"

"The ski trip starts tomorrow," he started explaining, "Basically the entire vampire community in the US is going because of the Badica attack…"

Though I had a feeling he was over-exaggerating some, I still had to question…how the _hell_ do I keep missing the important stuff? "Oh," I commented intelligently and smiled a bit, "I guess in that case, I do have to go pack."

"Man, you are oblivious aren't you?" he teased.

"Nobody tells me these things!" I exclaimed in my defense. That much was true, nobody informed me of anything important ever now.

"Sure…" Mason chuckled and rolled his eyes, "well, this is my stop. It's been a fun day."

"Certainly has," I agreed, "thanks for taking me and showing where to go. Oh! And for the heads up about tomorrow, I would've been totally screwed if you didn't tell me," I rambled a bit.

"Not a problem," he said and paused for a moment, like he was debating something. Then he totally and utterly shocked me by leaning down and kissing my cheek, "Good night, AJ."

I stared after him as he walked down the hall in total surprise. My mind, well, holy shit seemed like an accurate phrase to describe what that boy just did to my thoughts. Sighing, I shook my head with a smile and went up the stairs, telling myself to deal with the situation later when I had the chance. That was basically my mantra for anything that couldn't be done right away anyway.

Walking up to Rose's room, I paused outside of her door to hear some interesting noises. I knocked, but nothing happened, so I carefully opened the door and poked my head in the room. There she was, prancing around her room like an overly ecstatic 6-year-old who just found out she was getting a puppy. "Uh…Rose?" I asked, "are you…uh…did your mother find you a girlfriend or something?" I asked jokingly. Trust me, this wasn't at all how I expected things to wind up.

She paused and looked at me, face falling slightly. "That isn't at all what happened."

I sighed…open mouth, insert foot. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that…I just…I didn't expect you to be doing, well, that," I gestured to her weakly.

"It's alright, I guess that was a little strange," Rose laughed a bit and I eased up, "you can come in, you know. What'd ya need?"

"I saw your mom come up here," I answered and slid into the room, "I just wanted to make sure you were alright. I know you two aren't necessarily on the best of terms."

"Oh, I'm fine," she shrugged, "she just came up to give me a Christmas present. Though you were right in that we do have an… interesting relationship."

I snorted and muttered, "I know that feeling."

"Got mommy issues yourself, AJ?"

I smirked a bit, "You know what's happened to me. More than a few fights and there's a bit of resentment on all sides involved in varying directions. I'd say it's probably better to just leave my fun family at that, for your sanity and for mine."

"Fair," Rose nodded and sat down on her bed, "really though, I'm alright. As I said, she just came up to give me a present," she explained again and held up the bracelet with the cross.

"She gave you a _chotki_?" I asked and went over, sitting down next to her.

"Huh? Oh, no, Liss gave me this," she answered and glanced at me warily, "God, please don't tell me you know that because you're a religious nut."

"If you consider a half agnostic half atheist a religious nut, then yes, yes I am," I laughed, "no, my uncle was given one when he was, still is actually, guarding a Szelsky family. It was a little more masculine, the beads were black, and obviously the Dragomir shield wasn't on the back of the cross, but same idea," I explained.

"Oh," she muttered, "But please, do explain to me how one is half agnostic and half atheistic."

I grinned, "It just depends on what day you ask as to which I believe. I do believe in the fact that there are no atheists in foxholes, so I can't consider myself a full on atheist."

Rose smirked wryly, "Smart girl, I must admit."

"I try," I shrugged, "So what _was_ so good that caused your little happy dance when I first came in?" I asked, I was genuinely curious over that.

"Dimitri and Tasha," she grinned brightly, "Tasha offered him to be her guardian and he's going to accept. Meaning, they're going to be together and have a family and I will be a happy Rose, yay!"

I chuckled at the way she was gushing over the two of them and thought back to the party. They seemed really, _really_ adorable together now that I thought about it. "They're cute together, Dimitri seems cool enough. And Tasha's an offensive magic supporter, therefore she instantly earned my respect… she's a pretty awesome woman."

"All of that is true," Rose nodded, "And I didn't figure you to be an offensive magic supporter yourself."

I smiled and got up on my feet, "There's probably a lot you wouldn't assume of me, Rose. I am an enigma to many," I partially joked.

"Mm," she hummed in thought, "Well, there is one thing I know about you Miss AJ," she commented teasingly and smirked mischievously, "once I get you and Mason together any matchmaking interference I may need to do is complete."

I tried to stare at her blankly, not blushing, but probably failed miserably since her smirk widened. "I have no idea why you keep bringing that up," I grumbled and turned away to head out and to hide the fact that I was blushing yet again.

"Of course you don't," Rose laughed.

"I really don't," I agreed and glanced back at her, a slight smile playing at my lips. "Now I gotta go pack for this ski trip we're apparently taking that I learned about 10 minutes ago. So, have fun with any of your matchmaking plans left, I suppose," I added and went out the door.

"Is that an agreement to let me do this?" she called in question. In response, I just closed the door and walked away to her laughing again.

With everything done, I went back to my room, pulled out my larger bag that I just unpacked from getting here, and promptly stared at my closet. "To packing it is," I sighed.


	17. Chapter 15

**See, I respond when I get reviews. My thanks to ****Adele, dillydip248, Sucker1995, and anonymo**** for your reviews. Here's chapter 15. Enjoy, **_**review**_**, and I'll get right to work on the next one.**

**Disclaimer: Alyec is mine, AJ is Firestorm Runner's.**

Chapter 15

Rose

After AJ left, I started getting to work on my plans, barely restraining myself from dancing again. Not only did I get to have a real talk with my mom, but Tasha asked Dimka to be her guardian! This was the best Christmas ever!

I started going over what I would need to do. First, to ascertain what Dimitri thought of the offer. Acceptance would be a place to start, with a friendly shove here and there to escalate things. I could get a lot of people on this scheme! Lissa and Christian would definitely help. I could probably convince Mason and Eddie to get involved too. But first I had to know Dimitri's opinion. I went to bed pondering how to ask him.

The ski trip had great timing. I managed to get over to Dimitri while we were all waiting around to board the Academy's private jets.

"Hey, Comrade. I heard you've been offered a pretty sweet deal," I said, coming to stand beside him where he was leaning against a pillar.

He raised a dark eyebrow at me. "Why am I not surprised you know this?"

I tilted my head and smiled at him. "I have my sources. But they're not important right now. What are you going to do?"

"I'm still thinking about it, Rose," he said evasively.

I rolled my eyes. "Duh! But you are thinking of accepting, aren't you?"

"Of course," he rumbled. He hesitated for a moment, and looked at me thoughtfully. "You think I should?"

"I know you should. It's obviously an amazing opportunity, one that few of us ever get. And I don't think I need to tell you that Tasha is a freaking awesome woman. Of course, I'm not being entirely altruistic. I know that you two would be unstoppable together. I know you two could change things, things in the society we live in that need to be changed. I'd like to see change. But I also know you could both be happy, together." I put my hand on his arm.

He nodded solemnly. "You're right, I'm sure. But Tasha has more sway than me where society is concerned." Ah, ah, there it was! That spark of more-than-friendly affection I was counting on!

I shook my head. "You always sell yourself short." I was about to say more when Lissa called for me through the bond. "Oh, I have to go. My boarding group's up. See you on the plane, Dimka."

"Bye, Roza," he said, and I smiled as I jogged away.

When I got on the plane, I looked around for Lissa, wanting to talk to her. We hadn't really spoken much since the brunch, and I felt I needed to tell her about what I had been an intimate witness to in her head. But she was sitting with Christian, and they didn't look like they wanted to be disturbed. I put on a smile and nodded at them as I passed. As I did, I also walked by Dimitri and Tasha sitting together. I giggled to myself. Mason and AJ were sitting together. He was making some big movement with his hands, his face animated. Whatever story he was telling her must've been good, because she was laughing openly and didn't look shy or subdued in the least. Eddie was surrounded by some of our other novice friends, and there were no open seats by him. I sighed inwardly and took a seat in the back in a row that was empty except for one Moroi girl I couldn't quite put a name to who was staring intently at a book.

I didn't mind sitting alone. Solitude was my friend sometimes. It was oddly peaceful in this little set of seats. Almost as if there was a window between the two of us and the rest of the jet, the noise was muted back here. Quiet. Quiet was good.

I was slipping into a memory before I realized it.

"_What are you doing out here?"_

_I turned at the familiar voice and saw Her standing timidly in the doorway. _

_This was in the days before we were together, before I realized that I loved Her._

"_It was getting a little loud in there," I said, just as timid as She, if not more._

_She grinned a little. "Since when does Rose Hathaway ditch a party because it got too loud?"_

_I shrugged, blushing slightly. "I, I like quiet sometimes. Noise gets old."_

"_I know," She said. "You always find ways to surprise people… even me." The tail-end of Her sentence sounded pained, and I got an achy feeling in my stomach. I didn't want Her to hurt but what was I supposed to do? I was still adjusting majorly to all that had happened to me, everything I had learned. There was still so much I needed to figure out._

"_I've been told that before, but it's always been an insult in some form or another." I chuckled nervously, brushing a stray strand of hair out of my face._

_She frowned deeply. "Then whoever said it couldn't see the wonderful ways you surprise."_

_I didn't understand. I was never this shy before, around _**anyone**_. Yet here I was, blushing and shuffling my weight around, wracking my brains for what to say. Whenever I was near Her, She sent my insides all a wriggle. I stumbled over my words and got excited over the tiniest things She would say or do, and every time I looked at Her and saw Her smile at me, I felt aches in places that had nothing to do with guilt or discomfort._

"_Probably because none of the surprises I ever gave him were wonderful in his opinion," I said, thinking of Stan, who had been one to insult me._

_She laughed softly, and I wondered if She was thinking of the same person. She finally left the doorway and started walking toward me. I stayed where I was, waiting to see what She would do. "I… I know you're still getting used to things," She started. "I know you need more time, but…"_

_I waited, wondering what She wanted. My skin felt like it was buzzing with Her so near. She looked really beautiful under the light from the moon above us._

"_Would you want to come… do something with me? There's, um, there's this little fair run by some humans not far from here. I got tickets…" She too stumbled over Her words. "I understand if you don't want to—"_

"_I'd love to." The words slipped out before I realized I had thought them. But then they were out, and I found I couldn't make myself believe they were false._

_Her face lit up like one of those nuclear-powered light bulbs, only much prettier. Suddenly, She was excited and peppy. "Great!" She said. She smiled bashfully. "I'll make the arrangements. Saturday?"_

"_Saturday," I said. When I was thinking about this later that day, I realized I had been smiling just as widely as She had._

_I didn't know how long we would've stayed there just being shy and excited around each other if people didn't come to take us back into the party a moment later. I wound up losing Her in the crowd, but I knew we would be together again soon. Saturday couldn't come quick enough._

I seemed I had fallen asleep, because I jolted awake in my seat on the Academy jet when the wheels hit the ground on the private runway. I hadn't realized how tired I was. I ignored the sharp throb of emptiness in my chest and shuffled along with everyone else getting off the plane. The biting cold made me glad for my heavy coat as I battled through the snow with the rest of the school.

The resort wasn't far from the private hanger. It was massive, and it made me wonder if St. Vladimir residents would be the only ones here. We loaded inside the lobby, which had an elegant feel. The floors were tiled marble. An enormous chandelier hung down from the high, cathedral-esque ceiling. The rest of the hotel had a black, gold, and red color scheme. Red was, of course, the most dominant color. All the rooms had deep red carpets and bed sheets. Mirrors and art adorned the walls and little ornamental tables here and there supported vases of orchids that filled the air with a spicy scent.

The room I shared with Lissa was bigger than our dorm rooms put together. The carpet was so thick and plush I took my shoes off, luxuriating in the way my feet sank into that softness. Our beds were king-size, and topped with so many pillows I wondered if I could get lost in them forever. French doors opened to a balcony that would've been cool if it wasn't freezing, though the two-person hot tub on the far end would probably make up for it.

I was used to luxury of this magnitude. The Academy had nothing on this, of course. But my life with Her had proven very extravagant. We finally ventured outside, and I had a chance to enjoy myself. Our gang got together (well, minus Dimitri and Tasha) to hit the slopes. I didn't know if I felt like a fifth wheel or a supervisor around the couple and almost couple. They didn't exclude me or anything. I was glad I could be with all of them. Still, it was a lonely position, being the fifth wheel.

We spent most of the day skiing, though the two Moroi had some trouble keeping up. Considering what we dhampirs went through in our classes, these stunts were hardly daring. Mason and I held nothing back. AJ had the dignity (or maybe the general common sense) to pull back while she still had two working arms and two working legs. Mason and I were in it to win it.

"You guys are suicidal," remarked Christian at one point. He and Lissa had been waiting at the bottom of the mogul hill with AJ, watching me and Mason come down. My guardian side knew it was dangerous, but the rest of me liked the recklessness. I guess rebelliousness just didn't leave some people.

Mason grinned as we skidded to a halt, sending up a spray of snow. "Nah, this is just a warm-up. I mean, Rose has been able to keep up with me so far. Kid stuff." A challenge is it, boy?

Lissa shook her head. "Aren't you guys taking this too far?"

Mason and I looked at each other. "No."

She shook her head. "Well, we're going inside. Try not to kill yourselves."

She and Christian left, arm and arm, I watched them and then turned back to Mason and AJ. "I'm good for a while longer. You two?"

"Absolutely!" said Mason.

"I think I should stay here to make sure you two don't actually kill yourselves," said AJ.

"Fine," Mason said. "How about that one?" He pointed to a jagged path down one of the biggest slopes.

_Dangerous, seriously_, I thought. I had no fear for my safety, but he could get badly hurt if he messed up on that run. "That one really is insane, Mase."

"Ah," he said triumphantly. "She finally cracks."

I scowled. "She does not. Let's do it." He started off and I tugged on AJ's sleeve before I followed. In her ear, I whispered, "Keep an eye out. This one is serious. Make sure we can get help fast if we need it." She nodded and glanced worriedly at Mason.

I took a deep breath and leapt off. My skis slid smoothly over the snow, and piercing wind blasted into my face. I made the first jump easily. The next part of the course was tricky, and the bad feeling worsened. I pulled it off flawlessly, along with the rest of the course.

AJ stood beside me, now holding her skis instead of wearing them. I waved to Mason to follow suit. But he didn't. Halfway down, he wasn't able to pull of one of the jumps. His skis caught, and his legs twisted. Down he went.

AJ yelped and started sprinting towards him with me at her heels. We reached him just as some of the resort staff did. To everyone's relief, Mason was mostly fine with the exception of a nasty ankle sprain. One of the instructors monitoring the slopes ran forward, fury all over her face.

"What were you kids thinking?" She exclaimed. AJ was too busy over Mason to notice that we were getting a shake down. The instructor turned on me. "I couldn't believe it when you did those stupid stunts!" Her glare shifted to Mason. "And then _you_ had to go and copy her!"

I resisted the urge to tell her it was his idea. What was important now was that he was safe.

After we got him safely inside, I gathered our equipment and took it back to the storage buildings. When I went back inside, I used a different entrance than usual. This one was set in a porch cut into the mountain that offered a breathtaking view of the peaks and valleys around us if one was willing to stand the cold.

I walked up the steps, stomping snow off my feet as I did. Suddenly, my nose was hit with the smell of cloves, and a voice spoke to me out of the shadows.

"Hey, little dhampir." I froze where I stood and watched Adrian Ivashkov appear, leaning against the wall not far from the door. He had a clove cigarette in his fingers. He brought to his lips, took a drag, and then dropped it to the floor and stomped it out. He looked so young, just as young as the first day I met him. I wanted to run over and hug him, hug him just for being young once more.

But I didn't. I couldn't. So I crossed my arms as I took him in. He wore a long charcoal coat, probably made of a cashmere-wool blend, which fit him exceptionally well, and leather dress shoes. He had the purposefully unkempt brown hair I had always found to be absolutely adorable, and his blue-green eyes were full of a light and spark I had missed. He looked like he'd just come from a dinner party.

"Yeah?" I asked, trying not to show any recognition or any hint of just how happy I was to see him.

His eyes swept over my body, all bundled up and bruised as it was, and I wanted to laugh. _Only Adrian_, I thought.

"Just saying hi, that's all." He didn't say anything else, so I forced my feet to move toward the door. "You smell good, you know."

"I… um, what?"

"You smell good," he repeated.

This time, I couldn't hold back a smile as I replied. "Are you joking? I've been sweating all day. I'm disgusting."

"Sweat isn't a bad thing," he said. He leaned his head against the wall and looking upward thoughtfully. "Some of the best things in life happen while sweating." Didn't we both know it. "Yeah, if you get too much of it and it gets old and stale, it turns pretty gross. But on a beautiful woman? Intoxicating." He could say that again. "If you could smell the things a vampire does, you'd know what I'm talking about. Most people mess it all up and drown themselves in perfume. Perfume can be good… especially if you get one that goes with your chemistry. But you only need a hint. Mix about 20% of that with 80% of your own perspiration… mmm." He tilted his head to the side and looked at me. "Dead sexy."

I knew exactly what he was talking about. There was this one time… She had spent a whole day shopping and searching for the right perfume to drive me totally wild with lust. It had _**definitely**_ worked.

"Well, thanks for the hygiene lesson," I said. "But I don't own any perfume, _and_ I'm going to go shower all this hot, sweaty action off me. Sorry." He offered me a cigarette, and I smelled alcohol on him too. "Bad habit."

"One of many," he replied. "You here with St. Vlad's?"

"Yup."

"So you're going to be a guardian when you grow up." Grow up? Oh god, if only he knew.

"Obviously."

"How long until you grow up?" Seriously, the irony was both heartbreaking and hilarious. "I might need a guardian."

"I graduate in the spring. But I'm already spoken for."

Surprise flickered in his eyes. "Yeah? Who is he?"

"_She's_ Vasilisa Dragomir."

"Ah." His face split into a huge grin. "I knew you were trouble as soon as I saw you. You're Janine Hathaway's daughter."

"I'm Rose Hathaway," I corrected.

"Nice to meet you, Rose Hathaway." He extended a gloved hand. "Adrian Ivashkov."

I feigned surprise. "And you think _I'm_ trouble," I said. The Ivashkovs were famous for their arrogance and their willingness to walk over everything in the way of what they wanted. The Queen (Tatiana, anyway) was an Ivashkov, along with countless other pricks and bitches. Adrian was (mostly) an exception, and AJ couldn't really be counted because she was a dhampir and wasn't raised by Moroi Ivashkovs.

He laughed. He had always had a nice laugh, warm and melodious. "Handy huh? Each of our reputations precedes us."

I shook my head. "You don't know anything about me." Not yet, anyway. "And I only know of your family. I know nothing about you." Lies! It's all lies!

"Want to?" He asked tauntingly.

"Sorry. I'm not into people older than me." I still don't know how I said that with a straight face.

"I'm twenty-one. Not that much older."

"The fact remains," I said.

"Did your boyfriend try to choke you like that?"

I blushed, even in the cold. Of course he would notice the bruise. "He wouldn't be alive if he did. I got it during practice. Training is always rough."

"That's pretty hot," he said. He dropped this second cigarette to the ground and put it out with his foot.

"Being choked?"

"Well, no. Of course not. I meant the idea of getting rough with you is hot. I'm a big fan of full-contact sports." _Of course you are, Adrian_.

"I'm sure you are," I said dryly. The sound of footsteps behind me made me turn. Mia came around the path and walked up the steps. When she saw us, she stopped suddenly.

"Hey, Mia."

She glanced between the two of us.

"_Another_ guy?" From her tone, you would have thought I had my own harem of men. Adrian gave me a questioning, amused look. I chose not to dignify that with a response, so I opted for politeness.

"Mia, this is Adrian Ivashkov." Adrian turned on the same charm he'd used on me. He shook her hand. "Always a pleasure to meet a friend of Rose's, especially a pretty one." He spoke like he and I had known each other since childhood. Almost, but no.

"We aren't friends," I said, dropping all polite notions.

"Rose only hangs out with guys and psychopaths," said Mia. _Anyone have some brass knuckles?_ Her voice carried the usual scorn she harbored for me, but there was a look on her face that showed Adrian had clearly caught her interest.

"Well," he said cheerfully. "Since I'm both a psychopath and a guy, that would explain why we're such good friends."

"You and I aren't friends either," I told him, holding back a smirk.

He laughed. "Always playing hard to get, huh?"

"She's not that hard to get," said Mia, clearly upset that Adrian was paying more attention to me. "Just ask half the guys at our school."

"Yeah," I retorted, unable to stand idly by anymore. "And you can ask the other half about Mia. If you can do a favor for her, she'll do _lots_ of favors for you."

A flicker of embarrassment passed over her face, but she held her ground. "Well, at least I don't do them for free."

Adrian made some cat noises.

"Are you done?" I asked. "It's past your bedtime, and the grown-ups would like to talk now."

"Sure," she said crisply. Her cheeks turned pink, intensifying her porcelain-doll appearance. "I have better things to do anyway." She turned toward the door, the paused with her hand resting on it. She glanced toward Adrian. "Her mom gave her that bruise, you know."

She went inside. The fancy glass doors swung shut behind her.

Adrian and I stood there in silence. Finally, he lit another cigarette. "Your mom?"

"Shut up."

"You're one of those people who either has soul mates or mortal enemies, aren't you? No in-between. You and Vasilisa are probably like sisters, huh?"

"I guess."

"How is she?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

He shrugged with overdone casualness. "I don't know. I mean, I know you two ran away… and there was that stuff with her family and Victor Dashkov…"

I stiffened at the mention of Victor. "So?"

"Dunno. Just figured it might be a lot for her to, you know, handle." Was he… was he talking about spirit? It made sense. I didn't know if he knew his power in this reality, but it would be like him to investigate if he suspected he wasn't alone. I studied him carefully.

"I've got to go." Avoid now, look into later.

"Are you sure?" He sounded mildly disappointed. Mostly he seemed as cocky and amused as ever. He was still digging, looking for information. I wasn't comfortable sharing until I had more info of my own. "I thought it was time for the grown-ups to talk. Lots of grown-up things I'd like to talk about."

"It's late, I'm tired, and your cigarettes are giving me a headache," I said.

"I suppose that's fair." He drew from the cigarette and puffed out the smoke. "Some women think they make me look sexy."

"I think you smoke them so you have something to do while thinking up your next witty line."

He choked on the smoke, caught between inhaling and laughing. "Rose Hathaway, I can't wait to see you again. If you're this charming while tired and annoyed _and_ this gorgeous while bruised and in ski clothes, you must be devastating at your peak." I tightly withheld the smile from my face. _He doesn't know you here_, I reminded myself.

"If by 'devastating' you mean that you should fear for your life, then yeah. You're right." I opened the glass doors. "Good night, Adrian."

"I'll see you soon," he called after me. I decided against responding.


	18. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Lissa

I woke up around seven the next morning. Rose was out cold in the other bed and I knew she wouldn't be up for awhile. That was good. She always needed more sleep than she seemed to get. She always seemed tired.

I glanced over at her while I getting dressed. She looked exhausted. I prayed every night that she might get a peaceful rest that restored her, but so far God wasn't delivering. I carefully brushed a stray lock of hair from my best friend's face. Her cheek twitched when my fingertips brushed her skin, but other than that she didn't stir.

I got a weird feeling as I walked down the halls. It crept up my spine and made me shiver, but I had no idea why. I looked out of one of the windows and saw some dark clouds heading in the direction of the resort. Maybe that was why. A storm was coming. I dismissed it then and continued on my way.

I met Christian on my way downstairs. He pulled me into a hug and gave me a sweet good morning kiss. "Where's your hell spawn of a best friend?"

I smacked his chest, but with a laugh. "She's my best GF. It's her duty to me to be a bitch to you. It's a law of sisterhood."

"Sure it is," he grumbled. I giggled at his disgruntled look. Then, I took his hand and pulled him forward.

"She's still asleep. She'll be down later. Come on, silly, let's get breakfast."

Down in the massive dining hall, we met Eddie, Mason, AJ, and Tasha who waved us over to their table. The resort had laid out what was probably the biggest and most varied continental breakfast that history had ever seen. I felt kinda bad for Rose. She would be in heaven if she wasn't sleeping. I hoped she woke up before they took it all away. Even Christian was too scared to take on a hungry, grumpy Rose.

After we finished breakfast, Tasha asked us if we wanted to do something fun. She got this roguish smirk on her face and mirth lit up her eyes. When I thought about it, the expression reminded me of Rose, the way she used to get when she was looking for trouble. I frowned to myself. She rarely got that look anymore.

Anyway, we said sure, and she led us to a bedroom away from the student hallways. I assumed it was her room. We moved the furniture and sat in a sort of circle around the room. I sat on the bed, Christian took the armchair, Mason sat in a second table chair, and AJ and Eddie sat on the sofa. Tasha remained standing, and we all looked at her expectantly.

She smiled. "Alright, I know you guys are for Moroi and Dhampirs fighting together, so I thought it might be fun to show you a few tricks and tips."

Christian grinned gleefully. "Really? How much do you know?"

"Not much on the magic front," she said with a slight frown. "But few know anything at all, and this may be the worst possible time to be clueless. I don't care what the other royals think, the Badica attack was not random or a onetime thing. These Strigoi are organized, they planned out the attack, and they had help from humans. It doesn't make sense that they would do so much work for a one killing. So when they attack again, we should be prepared."

I shivered. "Do you think they would attack the resort? Or the Academy?"

"It's almost impossible to say. We can't know anything until we find them or they strike again."

"Then what are we waiting for?" AJ said, leaning forward in her seat on the sofa. "Let's get to work."

"Sure thing. Now, I thought I could show Christian some offensive magic first, and then we could move to the gym afterward. That cool with everyone?" We nodded. "Great! Okay, let's start with something simple. I know you've already learned how to set a specific object or person on fire, but what about multiple objects?"

And so the lesson began. It was pretty interesting, but I admit I tuned in and out. After all, fire wasn't my element. Most of the time, I talked to the Dhampirs. AJ and Mason were being totally adorable together. They were totally on their way to being a couple.

The door opened and Rose stepped inside the room. "Hey, you," I said happily, bringing everyone else's attention to her. She looked exhausted still, but maybe a little less than before.

"Good morning," Tasha said with a smile.

"Hi," Rose said tiredly. Concern instantly filled me. I wondered if she felt it. I patted the spot beside me. Maybe if she sat down, she would feel better. She took the spot and kicked off her shoes.

"You've got to see this," I said, hoping if I made myself feel peppy, some of the energy might trickle into her.

"What's going on?"

"Bad things," I said mischievously. "You'll approve." The corners of her mouth twitched into a small smile, and I felt rather accomplished. She started to nibble on the scone in her hand quietly and turned her attention to Tasha and Christian, who in turn focused their attention back on each other.

"So why can't I just stick to the consuming spell?" asked Christian.

"Because it uses a lot of energy," she responded. "Plus, it will most likely kill your opponent."

He scoffed. "Why wouldn't I want to kill Strigoi?"

"You might not always be fighting one. Or maybe you need information from them. Regardless, you should be prepared either way."

Rose realized what they were doing, and excitement and interest lit up her weary expression. I nudged her and when she looked, I slid my arm through the loop of hers. It was something we did all the time as best friends/sisters. But when I did it this time her breathing hitched in her throat. She looked down at our two linked arms silently for a long moment. Then she shook herself visibly, and turned her attention back to Tasha and Christian. Okay, that was weird even for her. I let it go this time, reluctantly turning back to watch the training session, but it kept nagging at me in the back of my mind. That weird feeling from before was starting to come back.

Tasha and Christian practiced a while longer. Christian improved, but he still had a lot to learn before he had Tasha's skill. They wrapped up the lesson when Tasha checked her watch and saw that the gym would be opening now. We all got up to go. I was almost out the door when I noticed that Rose hadn't gotten up yet.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked, coming back and putting my hand on her shoulder. She was rubbing her face with her hands. "Are you feeling okay? Do you want to go back to bed?"

"I'm so tired, Liss," she said, and I didn't think she was referring to physical exhaustion. "I can't think straight. I'm losing it slowly."

"Hey," I said worriedly. I sat next to her again. "Is this about the Other Place? Is it bothering you again?"

"It's never stopped _bothering_ me, Lissa. I doubt it ever will stop. I'm just… not dealing with it as well today."

Not knowing how else to comfort her, I pulled her into my arms, resting my face on her shoulder. She in turn hid her face in mine, slowly wrapping her two arms around me and hugging me back.

"You are my best friend," she said with conviction and with great sadness. "My sister for all intents and purposes. I wish I could explain this feeling to you. But I can't. Not here. I'm sorry." She pulled away gently and stood. "We should go. I'm sure they're wondering where we are." I stood, watching her face warily. Something was very wrong today, and I had a feeling it wasn't just the storm. I could feel it in the air. It wasn't just with Rose either. An ominous, unsettling air was falling over everything.

She surprised me when she spoke again, with a sigh. "Something's coming. I know you feel it too. It's bad, but there's something else too… something I can't discern. I don't think anyone else has noticed." She shuddered. "If you want to, meet me in our room later. I have a feeling today's the day I should tell you some things. Things about what happened to me in the Other Place."

"Okay," I said, nodding fervently. I certainly did want to. She had been so secretive about her experience, which was fine. I wasn't about to pester it out of her. But if there was something that could help me help her, I would do just about anything to know it.

I took her hand in mine, lacing my fingers through hers. She gave me a grateful half smile, squeezed my hand, and then opened the door. We hurried to catch up with the group and as we jogged down the hall I caught another glimpse of those storm clouds.

Whatever was coming, I hoped we were ready for it.


	19. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Nathan

I looked up at the sky, churning and booming just as we had hoped. Then I turned to the rabble of the Master's other followers. "Alright, people, it's show time!"

"Nathan, I do appreciate your enthusiasm," He said from behind me. I turned and bowed graciously to Him.

"Of course, Master. Tonight's the night. The next big step in the plan. I'm overjoyed," I said sincerely.

"Yes, tonight _is_ the night," He said with a happy sigh. He glanced in the direction of the far off Moroi resort. "I wonder if she can sense this. _Rose Hathaway_," he sneered. Then he added, "The second. I hope she can. I hope she senses my presence and feels fear."

"If she doesn't now, she surely will, Master. You have made far stronger warriors tremble at your nearness."

The Master wagged his finger at me. "Never forget," he said in a lightly chiding tone. "There is no stronger warrior than Rose. She is Shadow Kissed, battle hardened, and, after tonight, will be extremely driven. It just so happens that that is exactly what I need. Rose is lethal, but her emotions rule her as they rule all like her. They will be her downfall, and then, only then, will she _tremble_ as you so accurately put it. Now come," He said. "Battles are not won by indulging in daydreams. We must perform the resurrection before the storm passes."

"Everything is prepared, sir. All that is needed are your words to activate the spell."

"Then let's begin. Followers, gather!" We all formed a crowd around the ceremonial circle, lit with candles and burning herbs. The Master drew up his power and in his booming voice began the ritual words. "From the bosom of Death, I take hold of thee. With my hand I plunge into the world of spirits and tear you out!" His hand started to glow a brilliant red. "I call you forth, dead queen, with the essence of your beloved." He threw a few strands of dark brown hair into the great flame in the circle's center, hairs we had painstakingly acquired from Rose Hathaway's brush. Out of the flames appeared a soft, ephemeral white light. It was formless and faint, but what else could you expect from a spirit?

It spoke. In fear and confusion, it called out with a woman's voice. "Rose? Rose, is that you? Oh, where are you?" It moaned.

"Spirit!" The Master bellowed. "I sever your ties to the afterlife!" I and the other chosen acolyte, Samuel, held up the ceremonial thread. It was a cord of rare plants that, when utilized, could create many kinds of magic for interacting with the realm of the dead. The Master cut with a silver athame charmed by a dark shaman from His past. The spirit in the fire cried out in pain as it was torn completely from its rightful world. It faded almost to non-existence, but the Master quickly caught with the next piece of the enchantment.

"I bind you here with the blood and milk of mothers," he spat, splashing a bowl of sweet-smelling pink liquid onto the disappearing soul. It solidified slightly, but still remained mostly shapeless.

"Rose, where are you? It hurts!" cried the soul. But it would receive no pity from us.

The Master, seeming almost god-like with the lightning of the storm behind him, sneered and held up the final component.

"Spirit, lost Moroi queen, murdered wife of Rosemarie Hathaway, I command you to take physical form. You are bound to this plane, now take your form once again!" He threw the severed arm at the woman's shivering soul. The arm went through, but the spirit shuddered and shook. A white light outlined her and began to glow brighter and brighter. "She comes," the Master whispered. The thunder of the storm reached a crescendo as the light also reached its peak.

Then all was quiet. We were all too anxious to make a sound. We waited for the smoke o the extinguished fire to clear. And when it did…

The circle was empty.

Third person

The storm raged through the night, but by morning was gone. The sky was clear enough to see the winter constellations, all of which seemed to focus their light on one particular thing on Earth. Cushioned and partially blanketed by snow, a woman lay sleeping. Suddenly, her eyelids snapped upward, revealing jade green irises full of discomfort and confusion. She sat up, looking down at herself as snow fell off her. She was soaked and started to shiver from the cold. She had no idea how she got here. One moment she was in her bedroom, putting clean clothes away and then… nothing. But now this.

She struggled to her feet, wrapping her arms around herself and looking around. She was definitely not in her room, and she couldn't see her wife anywhere.

"Rose?" She called out, but there was only the echo off the great mountains in the distance.

She looked around again, and her gaze lighted on a large building some distance away. It looked like a big, expensive resort of some kind, probably for skiers. If nothing else, maybe she could find out where she was from the people inside.

**That was okay, right? I'm nervous about it.**


	20. Chapter 18

**Here you go. I'm proud of myself. I did most of this today. Hope all my American readers had a great Thanksgiving, and for all my other readers I hope you had a great day.**

**Also, this is a shout out to the anonymous reviewer "Guest". You recently left that really nice paragraph complimenting my ability to mesh the original story with my own but didn't leave your name. So whoever you are, thank you. I'm glad you like my story and I hope these next two chapters satisfy you.**

**Disclaimer: I'm really sick of these things. Alyec, AJ, and the Master belong to me and my friend, along with my own plot. Everything else belongs to Richelle Mead.**

Chapter 18

Rose

Lissa kicked off her shoes and crossed her leg on the bed beside me and waited patiently while I collected my thoughts. I had to figure out exactly what I was going to tell her. It was all fairly heavy stuff, but some of it was much heavier than the rest. I took a deep breath before I launched into my epic adventure, hardy har har.

"Okay, so you know I disappeared from my apartment and wound up in a parallel universe similar to ours." She nodded. "There's so much more to the story. I'll tell you what I can."

"Anything you can tell me will be more than enough," she said reaching over and squeezing my hand. I fought the urge to sigh with pleasure. "I want to help you, Rose. I can't stand seeing you hurt anymore."

I smiled gratefully, and squeezed her hand back. "Thank you." I took another breath and continued. "I woke up in the forest outside the Academy. I was confused and shit-scared, thinking how the hell did I get here and whatnot. Things did not improve when the guardians on patrol that night captured me. They got one look at my face and were almost too shocked to remember to catch me."

"Why?" She asked eagerly, leaning forward.

"I'm getting to that," I said with a fond smirk. "They dragged me inside, where my presence caused more shock. At the time, I thought they were shocked that I had been captured. But I saw no faces I recognized. None of our friends were there or anyone at all from our grade. Then I was taken to the headmaster."

"Not Kirova?"

I shook my head. "She had retired. A man named Lazar had taken her place. He almost fell out of his chair at the sight of me. He said something in Russian about the dead rising and made the sign of the cross on his chest. I tried to ask them what was wrong, but none of them would answer. Lazar dialed a number on his office phone and spoke to the person on the other end in rapid Russian. There was shouting from the other end before he hung up and started pacing. He kept saying 'It's not possible' and couldn't stop looking at me. I kept trying to get them to tell me things. They finally did, but none of it made sense." I recalled the chaotic scene as I explained it. "They said I was a fully recognized guardian in the Royal Guard. They said I had graduated from the Academy and was in my _twenties_." Lissa's eyes widened accordingly. "They thought I had amnesia from the accident." I asked them what accident, and they were afraid to answer. To make a long story a bit shorter, the version of me from their world had died."

Lissa gasped. "How?"

I shrugged. It occurred to me now that I had never gotten all the details about it. "I was trapped in a fire somewhere. I and two other guardians were killed. All three of our bodies were recovered and identified, which is why they were so shocked to see me again."

She nodded. "I can imagine."

"So they were all surprised, wondering how I could still be alive. I was confused about what was real and fake. All I could remember was being in our apartment and they're telling me I died in a fire. It started to hit me when I mentioned running away with you and they said that never happened. I began to put two and two together after seeing some of the big differences between our world and theirs. For one, the Academy was packed. There were more Moroi in the school than I had seen in my whole life. The vampire population in that world was at least three times larger than ours. And they were using magic. I mean in combat. I saw Moroi students taking lessons in the gym on attacking with magic as well in martial arts. Something different happened in the history of their world that kept their society from falling apart like ours did. Both the Moroi and the Dhampirs had thriving populations, we were fighting together against Strigoi, and Dhampirs had equal rights. Life was especially good under their current queen, the one I guarded in that world."

"So what happened next?" She asked.

I sighed. "Well, eventually, the queen showed up. Lazar had called Court to tell them of my miraculous reappearance. She came personally, bursting into the room ahead of Her guardians." I smiled, remembering. "She stopped when she saw me. She looked like she couldn't believe her eyes, like she was seeing a ghost. I got up out of my chair when she barged in. After a minute, she walked forward. She touched my shoulder as if checking if I was really there." I laughed. "Then she grabbed me by the collar and kissed me."

"What!" Lissa said, eyes bugging. "She _kissed_ you? Like on the mouth?" She didn't look repulsed by the thought (which was good), just stunned.

I nodded with a smirk. "Like on the mouth. She thought I was her wife."

"Her wife?"

"Yes. The other me was married to her as well as her guardian. The vampires there were a lot more open to homosexuality since their population count wasn't abysmal." She looked shocked but intrigued. "Moroi and Dhampirs married all the time. It wasn't a big deal there. It wasn't the first time a monarch had taken one of their guardians as a spouse either.

"But anyway, you can only imagine my surprise when I found myself in a lip lock with a beautiful woman wearing a crown. I didn't know how to react, so I didn't react at all. I just stood there floundering. She pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. I returned it awkwardly, helplessly patting her back. She clung to me as if she'd die if she let go. The commotion stirred up a very loud argument between everyone. They were all yapping about reincarnations, miracles and blah, blah, blah while She hung off me. I had to shout to even be heard. I realized I was from a different world than them. They eventually realized it too. Then they insisted that I stay, and I didn't have many options since I had no idea how to get back. So I stayed."

"And that's how you came to be there," she concluded. Gently, hesitantly, she asked, "What happened with the queen?"

I sighed. "I didn't know how to feel about her. I mean, you find out you were married in another life and meet your spouse for the first time, you get a little shaken up. Plus there was the part of me being confused about liking women."

She paused, looking at me carefully. "Do you?"

I nodded without reluctance. "I do. I didn't know that at the time, but she opened my eyes."

"So you fell in love with her?"

I nodded again. "Yes, I did. She was already in love with me, and after a while I came around. We got married when I was nineteen, out of the Academy and working as a guardian at last. She was twenty-five. I proposed to her and the wedding was a huge, global affair. Nothing but the most outrageously public for the monarch, after all. The honeymoon was private though, which was a refreshing change from the usual lack of privacy." I wrapped my arms around myself, holding in a shake. "We were happy…"

"What happened?" She sounded like she was scared to know.

I sighed tremulously. "We were together for years, decades, just living a great life. The people loved Her, and me, treating me as if I was their Rose, just younger. I thought I would grow old and die in my sleep next to her. But instead it was _my_ turn to lose _her_." Lissa audibly gulped. "One morning, after we finally got out of bed, we were folding and putting laundry away when a bullet shattered the window and hit her in the chest. It was a group of stupid royal brats who got their hands on a gun and started firing it around. The bullet that hit her was a stray shot. She died before the spirit users could save her." It was getting harder to speak by the word. Lissa had tears in her eyes. "I… lost it. There's no other way to describe it. I broke down, clinging to her body, unable to believe that she was gone. It took them an hour to get me to let go of her so they could take her out of the room. I barely survived the first few days after. I couldn't handle watching them lower her casket. I fell to my knees and sobbed. They arrested the boys who were responsible. I wasn't going to do anything at first, but when I learned they had the leader, the one firing the gun, in custody nearby, I found him and killed him. He was a goddamn Zeklos, Jesse's spoiled pig of a son. I killed him. The others I let go, barely, but not him."

I glanced at her, gauging her reaction to this news. She didn't look horrified or repulsed. She looked a little green, but also like she understood why I did it. I took that as an okay to continue. The hardest part was over. It was a little easier to speak. "After that, they didn't seem to know what to do with me. I didn't know what to do with myself. I lasted a year before I went searching for a way to return here. I hoped I might find something else to live for. I found a solution with my aging mother's help in Nepal. I took the only things I truly cherished: this locket, my wedding ring and her engagement ring, and the dagger I use to take the darkness out of you. I went back and wound up in our apartment. Only a day had passed here. All the aging I had done over there reversed and I was back to being seventeen again."

"How?"

I shook my head. "I'm not sure, but if I had to guess, I'd say that when you cross into new dimensions you start to be affected by that world's time flow. If you return to your own, all the physical age you gained or lost vanishes. If someone from There came Here, they would likely lose all of their aging too. It's my theory anyway."

She nodded. "Seems sound to me." Then she was utterly serious, looking at me with sad eyes. She put her hand on my shoulder. "I'm so sorry that happened to you. I would rather you be happy there then miserable here."

I shook my head, smiling slightly at her. "I'm glad to be here, Liss. I found something to live for. I live for you and our friends. I will always feel the pain of losing her, but I can also count on all of you to be there when I need you. And that's enough."

She pulled me into a tight hug. I hugged her back, relaxing in her warm embrace. I managed to explain all of that without a hitch. I was extremely proud of myself.

And I managed to do it without actually telling her who my wife was.

**So that was the first part of the big explanation/reveal. Wanna guess what the next part will be?**


	21. Chapter 19

**Here's part two. I feel very accomplished. For those of you who have put the clues together or read my test sample for this story, this is confirmation of what you already know. For anyone who didn't do either of those things, hopefully this revelation only makes you more interested instead of less.**

**I felt it was important for most of the characters to be present for this. I hope I didn't confuse anyone with the constant point of view switches.**

Chapter 19

Lissa

I don't know how I slept that night. After Rose's explanation, I could barely process it all. My best friend was gay. My best friend had been married for decades. My best friend was a widow. Her wife, the Queen, had been murdered and her murderer was in turn killed.

God, how had she kept all of this inside for so long? I would've been dying to confide in someone, to find someone who could comfort me in my grief. If I lost Christian, I was certain I would die inside. I could hardly imagine what she must've felt losing her spouse of so many years.

In the morning though, she truly seemed better. It was as if finally confiding in me had lifted a terrible weight off her shoulders. Of course, I could still see the pain of the loss itself in her every move, but the loneliness was definitely less.

We went downstairs to breakfast, planning to meet up with our friends on the way. Funnily enough, after we found them, we ran into Rose's mom.

Janine

I sighed and tried to rub the sleep out of my eyes. Yesterday had been unusual at best. I couldn't shake the bad feeling I got when the storm hit. Something was amiss, but I couldn't clearly discern what. I walked down the hall out of the adult side of the hotel, hoping I still had time to eat breakfast before I had to meet with my charge.

I was almost to the main lobby, which was on the way to the main dining hall where breakfast was, when…

"Mom?"

I turned and saw Rose and the Princess coming down the adjoining hall with their friends. Rose looked refreshed and somewhat happy for once. She even smiled at me a little.

"How are you kids this morning?" I asked.

"Fine, Guardian Hathaway," the Princess said with a tired but sunny grin. "Are you on your way to the dining hall too?"

"I am. I can't stay long though. I have to meet with Lord Szelsky."

Rose frowned and didn't hide it quickly enough to keep me from seeing. I didn't like the thought of having to go to work any more than she did, but it was my duty and I wouldn't abandon it just to have more time at the breakfast table.

As I turned to continue on, I noticed out of the corner of my eye a girl among the group I hadn't seen before. I recognized her almost instantly as Luke Ivashkov's dhampir daughter, the one at the root of the family's most recent scandal. She was holding hands with Rose's redheaded friend; Mason I think was his name.

AJ

When Mason texted me that morning asking if I wanted to meet him before breakfast, it felt like he and I had exchanged such invitations a hundred times before. The butterflies I got in my stomach whenever I saw his name pop up on my phone seemed perfectly normal.

This was bad. And not in a bad way bad. Well, a little bit in a bad way bad, but not much. I was falling deeper and deeper into something with him. I couldn't—wouldn't—put a name to it, but it was happening all the same. I kept thinking about that little kiss he gave me, and the way we got along so easily. I kept thinking about his messy red hair and his freckles and those damn dimples of his. _Those stupid dimples!_

I knew it would probably be better for him if I stopped it or drew the line at friends, but I couldn't make myself do it. When I met him in the hall, he reached over and took my hand in his. He smiled at me, I blushed and smiled back. It felt like the most natural thing in the world.

I was screwed and I had no way out of it. All I could do was stick around for the ride.

We met with Rose and Lissa on the way downstairs. Rose looked a lot better than she did yesterday, less exhausted. We walked with them and found Eddie, Christian, and Guardian Hathaway too.

In the main lobby, there was a familiar looking blonde woman talking to the man at the front desk. Her clothes were wet and not suitable for winter. She was shivering. And she looked _really_ familiar.

Rose's wife

The lobby of the resort was blessedly warm. I had no idea how I got here, but my clothes were not meant for winter weather. I rubbed my arms to try and warm them as I moved toward the front desk. The man there looked up at me and offered a saccharine smile. "Princess, how can I help you?" He said in an upbeat voice. I looked at him in confusion. Why on earth did he call me Princess? No one but Rose called me Princess anymore, and even she preferred to say Queen.

I chose to let it go. "Yes, can you tell me the name of this resort, and where we are?"

Now he gave me a confused look. "This is the Belmont private ski resort, Princess, in Montana **(I don't know what state it was)**. Are you feeling alright? Your clothes are wet and you're shivering. I can send someone to fetch you a towel."

Montana? I hadn't been in Montana since my last sanctioned visit to the Academy over five years ago. Why would I be here of all places? And during winter when last I remembered it was late spring?

But I said yes to the towel. I wouldn't solve anything if I couldn't get these shivers under control. A bellboy brought one to me. I used it to soak up some of the water from my shirt.

"What month is it?" I asked the clerk.

"December, just after Christmas." He gave me a worried look. "Are you sure you're alright?"

December?

"No," I said quickly. "I, I'm fine, just a little shaken up. Thank you for your help." I looked around the room, and my eyes landed on her. She was coming into the lobby with a group of people. She was young, impossibly young, but I didn't notice that at first. I just knew it was her, the woman I loved who could hopefully explain what was going on to me.

I called out to her. "Rose!"

Rose

When I heard Her calling my name, I thought I was hallucinating again. But there She was, right in front me. God, look at Her. I couldn't breathe. She was so beautiful, in her thin green blouse, the one that matched her eyes. Her face was young. She looked the same as the day I met her. She was perfect.

I should go to Her. Pull Her away from the window, before something… happened. I moved past my friends to get to Her. Wait… my friends? I looked back at them. My friends… The hotel. I was in the ski resort. She was in the ski resort in Her green blouse, the one from when…

A gunshot thundered in my mind. I squeezed my eyes shut tight. I stumbled and grabbed the edge of the table to keep from falling. I was too late. Not again. No, please no, not again.

I felt my heart begin to speed up, my blood pound, my breath quicken to shallow gasps. She was going to fall, and I couldn't do anything to stop it. I couldn't watch it again. I couldn't do it again. It was too much.

"Oh my god," I heard someone say. "Lissa, it's…" I didn't hear the rest. I fell to the floor. My legs totally gave out. I was hallucinating. I had to be. My skin itched and pulsed, my head swam. The familiar jarring panic was back, the nightmare.

I had to push it back. I blocked out the hallucination, blocked out everything. I put my hands on my head, pulled my knees up, and hid my face in them. I tried to focus on my breathing, but the wind had been stolen from my chest.

She was here.

Lissa

I stared, my mouth agape, at her. It… It wasn't possible. Yet here she was, looking at Rose in shock and concern. My best friend had fallen to the floor as if her legs had turned to jelly. An understandable reaction, under the circumstances.

"Oh my god," Christian said. "Lissa, it's you!"

Everyone else

Holy shit! There are two of them!


	22. Chapter 20

**Once again, I apologize for taking so long to update. I just finished my senior year of high school, so I hope you can forgive me. Now that it's summer, I expect more to come. **

**I would like to thank GraecusFulminata for their truly lovely review!**

**Disclaimer: you know the deal. I don't own any characters recognizable from the book series.**

Chapter 20

Rose's wife

When Rose fell, I moved forward out of instinct. Of course, I was too far away to catch her. She hit the floor, eyes wide and stunned. I rushed to get to her side. I knelt in front of her and covered her hands with mine. She didn't respond, so I shook her gently. "Rose? Baby, it's me! Look at me, sweetie," I pleaded. For a long moment it was in vain, but then her dazed eyes locked onto mine. I thought it was a good sign at first, but then I found myself knocked back onto my ass. She had thrown my hands away in what looked like terror and horrible pain. She frantically scrambled back. Her shoulder hit the doorframe. Whatever terrible trance she was in, the contact seemed to bring her out of it. She leapt up and ran from the room, but not before I saw tears streaming down her face.

I clambered to my feet as well. I made to go after her, but a hard arm blocked my passage. I struggled against it to no avail.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Suddenly furious, I turned to the redheaded woman holding me back and struck her across the face. "Unhand me!" I realized too late that it was Janine Hathaway, Rose's mother. She drew back more in surprise than pain, I think, but made up for it by using her body to block my way entirely. The others in the group also moved behind her. How dare they! "Get out of my way! As your queen, I command you to stand aside." That got no response from them, which only infuriated me more.

"Yeah, no chance in hell, lady," said a boy who looked alarmingly like Mason. I saw another girl, one I didn't recognize with black and green Ivashkov eyes leave in the direction Rose had ran in. Well, I wasn't going to have any of that nonsense. I tried to push past them again, smacking at their arms and shoving them, but it was in vain. I knew I should've taken Rose's advice and gone to the gym more. My arms had no strength whatsoever.

I wasn't a harsh queen by anyone's definition, but that I didn't mean I allowed insubordination to go without punishment. The Guardian Council would hear about this once I figured out what the hell was going on.

But all that could only happen after I made sure my wife was okay.

AJ

I had no idea what the fuck was happening, but I figured it would _not_ be good for Rose to be alone right now. So I bounced on out of there, heading off to find her, putting my trust, however blind, in the others to keep the other half of this little situation contained. I pushed thoughts of doppelgangers and gay lady love (because the look in that Lissa-clone's eyes couldn't be mistaken for anything else) aside and focused solely on finding my distraught friend.

I found her trail easily enough. There were broken things and people struggling to their feet from where she had accidentally run into them. I maneuvered around them as best I could, thanking God that I had put some shoes on when I left my room. (Glass in your foot hurts like a bitch.) She had run down the halls and up the stairs, but not to her room. It looked like she didn't make that far before something stopped her mad scramble. I wagered it was probably the upturned table lying awkwardly on the carpet. I stepped over it and then stopped, looking around. I ran hand through my hair as I thought of where she could possibly have gone from here.

This hall was quiet, quiet enough that I could hear exactly what I needed. I looked to my left and I found the door to a closet of housekeeping stuff slightly ajar. The handle was bent down at an unnatural angle, meaning she broke it to get in. Someone was inside, crying. It sounded like some sort of wounded animal was inside. Now, it was safe to say I didn't have a lot of experience with nervous breakdowns or people having them, but I approached as I would approach anyone caught in intense emotion. Very, very cautiously.

I pulled open the door, wincing when it squeaked slightly. "Rose?" I found her in the corner in a spot she cleared of equipment. She was curled up in a ball there, shaking and sobbing. It hurt my heart. "Hey…" I moved around the carts and bottles and stuff until I could kneel beside her. I put a hand on her shoulder. "Rose, come back. You're safe. Everything's okay…"

"No!" She snapped. "It's not okay! Nothing is okay! And it'll never be okay!"

"Shh, why would you say that?" I put my arm around her shoulder. "Why isn't it okay?" She muttered something I couldn't discern. "What was that?"

"Because she's dead!" Rose cried. "She's dead and she's not coming back. But I can't! Stop! Seeing her!"

I gulped. "You mean the woman in the lobby?" I asked gently, rubbing her back. She nodded. "Well… I don't know, she looked pretty alive to me."

She stilled. Red-rimmed brown hairs peeked out of her arms to meet mine. "You… you saw her too?"

Brows lowered in confusion, I nodded. "Yes… we all did. She was real, if that's what you're worried about. Real and right in front of us." I tried a small smirk, hoping to lighten the mood even just a little bit. "She was real and pretty pissed that we wouldn't let her go after you. She was really worried about you. As are we."

"You saw her?" She asked again, incredulous.

"Yes, Rose, we did."

"She… she was real?"

"Yes."

"But… how? She was dead. I watched her die. How can she be here?" She rubbed her face and clutched her head, trying to process this information that was apparently quite baffling.

"I don't know…" I probed carefully. "But we won't exactly find out if we don't go back there and get answers." Her fingers clenched tightly around her arms.

"I don't know if I can face her."

Ah, well… I puffed out a breath. "Well… we don't have to go down right now. We can stay here for a little longer. Take a few minutes. Breathe, collect yourself." I sat down next to her. "I'm right here. We won't leave until you're ready."

She let out a tremulous breath and nodded, almost more to herself than to me. She leaned into me, so I wrapped my other arm around her securely.

I don't know how long we sat there, but I had to guess I'd say about ten to fifteen minutes. Rose slowly but surely got a hold of herself. Her breathing regulated and she stopped shivering like someone freezing to death. She stole a paper towel from a cart and wiped her face. Finally, she opened her eyes again and looked at me with tentative resolve.

"I think… I think I'm ready."

I gave her a nod, stood up, and gave her my hand. "Then let's go." We left the closet, ignoring the confused and accusatory stares of other guests and employees, and went back downstairs to face the whacky music.

**Yes? Still good? Share with me.**


	23. Chapter 21

**Yes, I know that it has been a long time. But there's this little thing called college that has been demanding the majority of my attention as of late. I'll try to update as much as I can this summer, but then I can't promise anything. I'm very grateful to every one of you who put up with my inconsistency. I hope I haven't lost my edge. These two chapters are a little shorter than usual, but I hope the fact that there are two of them will appease you.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but Alyec, Nathan, the Master, AJ to an extent, and Rose's wife to an extent**

Chapter 21

AJ

I honestly didn't know what I expected to happen when we got down there again. I was kind of holding my breath the entire time. Rose and I returned to the lobby only to discover that our group plus one clone had moved to a more private setting, a lounge down the hall. We heard their voices through the door. I squeezed Rose's shoulder. She was kind of hella tense. She looked to be preparing herself for anything. I hoped it helped. But when it became apparent that she wasn't going to make the first move anytime soon, I cautiously did it for her. I turned the knob and gently pushed the door open

We were greeted with the sight of loud arguing. All of our friends were on one side of the coffee table, staring angrily at the Lissa-clone who was on the other side of the table, staring just as angrily back. They were yelling at each other, so loudly that I couldn't actually hear what they were going on about. But all that abruptly ended when the clone caught sight of Rose and me standing in the doorway.

"Rose!" Her pretty face lit up, only to become apprehensive a moment later. Her exclamation silenced the others as well. No one said a thing; we barely even breathed.

I gently pushed Rose further into the room. She wasn't expecting it and stumbled a little, but all the while her eyes were locked with the clone's. She didn't move for a long moment. I was about to give her a little more encouragement when she finally made that first step. Maybe I expected her to run and tackle the woman in a hug, or something to that effect. But that wasn't what happened; just the opposite in fact. Every step she took was slow and a tad unsteady. She approached the woman silently and didn't stop walking until they were about a foot away from each other.

"Rose?" The Lissa-clone prodded tentatively. My friend gulped. Then, after another impossibly long moment, she acted. Her hand rose as if to cup the blonde's face, but it stopped just before skin met skin. She shook with uncertainty, with fear _and_ hope. Lissa-clone's eyes softened. "Oh, Rose…" she whispered. She lifted her hand and let it cup Rose's cheek. "I'm here. Feel me, I'm real. _I'm real_." Rose gasped at the contact. Tears rolled down her cheeks from her eyes, which were clenched shut. She finally allowed her hand to move once more, and she touched the woman's face. The physical connection made her eyes open up again.

"R-real," she mumbled. Lissa-clone nodded and smiled. After that, it was like an explosion of movement, but not exactly what I expected. Rose surged forward, wrapping the blonde woman in her arms and kissing her right on the lips, stunning everyone. _Welp, that's one way to do it_, I thought to myself, rubbing the back of my neck and standing awkwardly near the door.

There was gasping and whimpering, but nothing from the others in the room. There was only shocked silence from them.

I think it was a minute and a half, maybe a little less, before the two women broke apart. When they did, they stayed close and touched their foreheads together. They were staring into each other's eyes intently, intensely.

"Baby, what happened? Tell me," Lissa-clone whispered, holding Rose's face.

"Y-you… you were…" That was all Rose seemed to be able to articulate. Then she grabbed the older woman into a tight embrace, burying her face in her neck. There she started to sob, but I imagined it must have been out of incredulous relief. I didn't know who this… _person_ was to Rose, other than very important. _Extremely important, based on that lip lock_, I thought with a mental whistle. Seeing her alive must feel so incredible. If my friend was aware of anything going on around her right now, I would eat my shirt.

With the initial _oh snap_ moment over, I took a moment to look at the other people who were in the same boat as me. There was more than one jaw on the floor. Oh, I couldn't imagine what _Lissa_ must be thinking right now. Oh man… I'm sure everyone else was just as freaked out, but for different reasons. For the most part they all looked like someone had just thrown bricks in their faces, except, ya know, without the blood and broken noses. That's a weird image, never mind.

After another awkward minute, I decided to step into action again. _Someone_ had to do something, and clearly no one else in the room was willing or able to. I stepped between the two parties and held my hands up in a calming gesture, facing the larger group.

"Okay…" I said, scrambling to think of something. "I think Rose and her, um… friend…" Nice going, AJ. "I think they need a few minutes alone. So let's give them that." I had to somewhat forcefully move people out of the room. _Go, go, go_, I mentally growled. Whatever was going on here, I thought those two could use a little privacy. After I made sure the door was fully closed behind me and noticed that they hadn't moved an inch, I rubbed my forehead, feeling the first signs of a headache coming on.

**So yeah, I hope you guys will still read it.**


	24. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Nathan

I really wasn't sure what to do with myself. One part of my gut was telling to run the fuck away because clearly something had gone wrong in the ritual and I preferred my head on my shoulders rather than a spike. But another part was in contention with that instinct, telling me to stay because my Master didn't seem angry. In fact, he seemed disturbingly calm. He was gazing at the empty circle with a little smile on his face that, even to me, could only be described as creepy. He seemed frighteningly relaxed under the circumstances, which provided the smart coward side of me with more evidence for its case.

I damn near pissed myself when he slowly turned to face me. His red eyes froze me in place. That was part of his great power and presence. Even a simple stare could pin you where you stood. He leisurely walked over and stood in front of me, the very image of contentment, which is why I was so terrified. The Master only got that look when he was about to start a slaughter.

"Nathan," he crooned silkily, leaning into my face.

"Y-yes, Master?" I stammered, cursing myself the whole time.

His grin widened, revealing his fangs, as he leaned in and put his mouth next to my ear. I shook in my place, and I was not ashamed to admit that.

"The spell worked." He whispered, and then he started to laugh. He pulled away and laughed from his stomach, loud and full. The universe responded to his mirth, and it seemed like the night was shaking just as much as I was.

The Master's heavy hand fell on my shoulder as he continued to laugh. "You should have seen your face, my friend! Hahaha! A truly priceless expression!" I let out a weak, forced chuckle. "Never fear, Nathan, the spell was a great success."

"B-but…" Shut up, Nathan! Shut the fuck up! "She's not h-here, Master."

"Oh, she's here," he said, looking off into the forest. "Not in the circle, but _here_, in this world. She has a physical form, and she can't be very far away. The spell's range is limited." His eyes narrowed. "I imagine she reappeared near Rose, drawn there no doubt. It will not be difficult to locate her." With a wave of his hand, he used his water magic to extinguish the fire and the candles. The world darkened, but as Strigoi, our vision was not bothered. "I want your scouts to comb the area. Let's make it a… 15 mile radius, just to be safe. Be sure to cover the ski lodge extensively. I will bet my blood that you will find her there."

I took a deep, if unnecessary breath, and then released it. "What would you like us to do when we find her? Especially if she has found her lover?"

"Monitor them, but do not approach." The Master smiled again. "We'll let them have their reunion. Better for them to have their little moment of happiness. It will make crushing them so much more enjoyable." He licked his lips lustfully and stretched out his neck. He glanced at me again. "See that my orders are carried out to the letter, faithful servant of mine."

I straightened up, finally regaining my composure. "I shall, Master."

"Good. I'm going to hunt."


End file.
